Beethoven: The Middle Quartets

Note: This is a continuation of my overview of Beethoven's magnificent String Quartets, my tribute to him on the 250th anniversary of his birth.

Beethoven's next three string quartets were commissioned by Count Andrey Kyrillovich Razumovsky, Russian ambassador to Vienna, in 1806.  This was one of the composer's most prolific years, when he wrote his 4th Piano Concerto, his 4th Symphony and his Violin Concerto (the greatest such concerto ever composed, in my opinion).  But the work that most guided what are called “The Razumovsky Quartets” was Beethoven's great Symphony No. 3.  With these, Beethoven transcended the traditional string quartet into a “symphonic” type achievement.

Whereas Beethoven's Early Quartets could all be played by competent amateur musicians in the service of various aristocrats and religious royalty, these three quartets were a challenge for even many professionals to play.  They are rich, textured, nuanced, layered, sophisticated yet compelling and pleasing to the ear.  The Razumovsky Quartets are nothing short of a transformation of the musical form in a manner that would be followed by Franz Schubert, Felix Mendelssohn, and many others.

With these quartets we break from the traditional command of Mozart and Haydn.  This was new music such as the world had never known, the birth of Romantic from the Classical period of music.  Of these a correspondent of the day wrote in early 1807: “three new, very long, and difficult Beethoven quartets...are attracting the attention of all connoisseurs.  They are profoundly thought through and admirably worked out, but not to be grasped by all.” (page 176)

Opus 59, No. 1 (his seventh quartet overall) opens with the best allegro in the set.  Immediately you can hear something different from the Opus 18 set.  These quartets are much longer than those earlier ones, longer than anything Haydn or Mozart composed in this musical form.  While the Opus 18 quartets generally clock-in at between 22 – 26 minutes. Opus 59, No. 1 is over 37 minutes in length.  No. 2 is performed in around 33 minutes.  No. 3 about 30 minutes.  Obviously, this affords Beethoven the luxury of time with which to play with all sorts of variations and repetitions, allowing a symphonic multitude of themes to be brought into play.  I find this allegro to be my favorite by Beethoven so far.  It is fast yet stately, genteel yet powerful, surgical yet sweeping.

The second movement is also rich and varied.  At times quiet and pensive, at times a dance, at times glorious and rejoicing.  Lyrical passages are separated by moments of subtle, expert interplay between the instruments which return to the louder lyrical parts.  

The third movement is, for me, the greatest accomplishment in the Razumovsky set and among the greatest compositions by Beethoven ever.  It might seem melancholy to some but for me it is tumultuous and exploratory.  I feel contemplative and yet like clockwork listening to this piece, filled with extended yearning.  The phrases are wonderful and mark a sort of special journey in just this movement.  I especially enjoy how Beethoven features the cello in this movement.

The finale is a Theme Ruse, likely at the request, or at least in his honor, of the Count's Russian heritage.  Beethoven not only accommodates the request, he turns it into something spectacular, racing along, sweet and passionate phrases, frantic giving way to and incredibly spritely and sweet conclusion to this extraordinary string quartet, one of Beethoven's masterworks.

According to Cross and Ewen: “The first quartet is unusual in its architecture: all four movements are in the two-theme, three-section form usually reserved for the first movement of the classic sonata, symphony...This work has been dubbed the Cello Quartet because that instrument is used so prominently. (page 78)

No. 2 (number 8 overall) is splendid as well, though not quite as good.  The long Molto Adagio second movement strikes me as a particularly good example of the “symphonic” character of these quartets.  It is a very strong composition on its own, accessible yet richly complex.  Cross and Ewen: “In the second quartet we have a molto adagio movement which is one of the most exalted pieces of music written by Beethoven, sometime compared to a prayer.” (page 78)

Though that movement takes time to develop through a myriad of themes, overall Robert Greenberg finds No. 2 less expansive than No. 1 labeling it “lean and abrupt,” while Michael Steinberg calls it “taut and terse.”  Traditionally, finales for quartets were supposed to confirm the home key of the music.  In this case, however, Beethoven boisterously ventures off into a new expressive direction altogether which contains more than a hint of humor.  A fun finish.

No. 3  (number 9 overall) is terrific with more sophisticated explorations particularly with its dissonant opening movement, obviously inspired by Mozart's K. 465 quartet.  Unlike Mozart, however, this first movement does not rely on melody or rhythm at all.  This was Beethoven's bold attempt to shock his audience.  It certainly does not sound as revolutionary today as it actually was at the time.  

Regarding the “shocking” dissonance Steinberg writes: “This is not the same as the desire to annoy.  Beethoven was perfectly capable of that in his life, but he did not waste hist artistic energy on such games.  No, what Beethoven wants to do here is make you sit up, because he is going to do extraordinary things, things that ask your utmost alertness.” (page 190)
The third movement Menuetto, brings us back to more conventional ground which fuses with a powerful presto flourish at the end.

It is difficult to over-esteem the Razumovsky set.  As 12-movement sets of string quartets go, this grouping is incomparable.  I'm sure Beethoven made a great deal of money off this commission.  Whatever he paid, the Count owned brilliant music that was now the standard of the form at a time and place (Vienna) where such things were held in high value.  These three quartets would be almost unrecognizable to, and almost certainly disliked by, Haydn.  They are literally a revolution in western music.   

Beginning three years later, Beethoven composed two other quartets.  Though pleasing enough, I don't find a lot worthy of note in either work.  Steinberg writes: “The terse Op. 95 is in every sense difficult Beethoven; by comparison, Op. 74 is genial and inviting of access, though at no sacrifice of the personal and the original.” (page 197)

Of No. 10, named "The Harp," Cross and Ewen writes: “This quartet is distinctive for its beautiful adagio ma non troppo movement which finds contrast with the quixotic moods of the third movement presto, with its remarkable rhythmic vitality.” (page 79)  I agree with this and would add that the presto is actually the most unique accomplishment of this work.  It is masterful, perhaps Beethoven's best presto.  

Greenberg: “The 'Harp' can be perceived as a kind of musical self-meditation after the trauma of the French invasion and occupation of Vienna.  It is unusual in that it greatest expressive force resides in the middle movements, which are anchored by relatively placid outer movements.  The 'Harp' is one of the most delightful and graceful works Beethoven composed...[it] is a more intimate and less densely scored quartet than any of the opus 59 quartets.  More importantly, though, it marks a return to the classical idea of the string quartet as conversation rather than oratory.”

At a mere 15 minutes or so, No. 11 is Beethoven's most abbreviated quartet.  Greenberg: “This quartet is marked by an urgency and sense of tragedy unusual even for Beethoven.  The terse and sometimes violent nature of opus 95 can be partially attributed to Beethoven's avoidance of transitional passages to his shocking, dramatic juxtapositions.  It is his most furious – and furiously compact – quartet.”

Cross and Ewen gives a solid overview of the piece.  “The F major Quartet is identified as the Serious for its subdued emotion and austerity of mood.  The first harsh measures of the opening allegro con brio project a grimness that pervades most of this movement.  The ensuing allegretto (in place of the usual slow movement) remains the medium of sober reflections that often touch the mournful.  Even the scherzo, where the greater lightness of the heart might be expected, is often submerged under dark shadows.  In the finale, however, a more optimistic attitude asserts itself, but only after some preliminary struggles.” (page 79)

In a sense Op. 74 and Op. 95 are string quartet “doodles” that Beethoven wrote just to stay connected with this important musical format.  They were placeholders for him to take a break from other compositions, sharpen his skills for other works during this time, while still touching the “quartet mind.”  This would stir him well when he got to the Late Quartets, the most brilliant of his incomparable quartets.  These two lesser quartets have their own marvel, not least is that this is how Beethoven remained committed to the form until his creative genius could return to it full force.

Recordings of the middle quartets...

• Opus 59, No 1. - my favorite of all these, fantastic allegro and adagio
  
• Opus 59, No.2 - the middle child, symphonic at times
  
• Opus 59, No. 3 - experimenting with dissonance, a thrill ride
  
• Opus 74, "The Harp" - with its great adagio
  
• Opus 95, "Serious" - brief, grim yet hopeful