CXXXVII. BEETHOVEN, Ludwig van: String Quartet in B-Flat Major, Op. 18, No. 6

CXXXVII. BEETHOVEN, Ludwig van (1770-1827)

String Quartet in B-Flat Major, Op. 18, No. 6 (1798-1800)
1. Allegro con brio
2. Adagio ma non troppo
3. Scherzo: Allegro
4. "La Malinconia": Adagio -- Allegretto quasi Allegro
Gioviale Quartet
(27:29)

Of the many great performances on YouTube, I chose this one because of the musical excellence -- but also because it was recorded in HD. Be sure to click on the wheel-shaped icon and change the setting to 1080p.

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Beethoven was still a young man and was already greatly admired in Viennese society -- especially for his abilities as a pianist.

He had just completed the Pathétique piano sonata (Op. 13), which was very popular.

He was also beginning to grow quite deaf.

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A friendship with the violinist Karl Amenda -- who is said to have tutored the children of Prince Franz Joseph von Lobkowitz (1772-1816) -- led to the Lobkowitz commission for six string quartets.

Of course, Beethoven had been studying the genre for years -- and these early quartets show the distinct influence of some of Haydn and Mozart's masterpieces. He carefully rewrote and revised them until he was completely satisfied.

He was mature but still imitating, yet he stamped his own personal style into each of these early works.

The Sixth is a perfect example of this. Movements 1-3 are typical examples of the "Classical" quartet -- but in the last movement, Beethoven goes beyond his predecessors in creating something quite new and unique.

First Movement

Notice the imitation between violin and cello, which becomes a shortened motif following its initial statement.

Second Movement (7:08)

A florid, beautiful sweeping movement full of tiny details:

Third Movement (14:35)

Beethoven is beginning to write the sort of syncopated, sforzando scherzi that will become a major part of his musical vocabulary in a few years. (see Eroica, Post XXIX) ...

Fourth Movement (18:11)

And here Beethoven truly finds his own voice -- the intensity of this Adagio is punctuated with delicate grace notes and harsh diminished chords on long half-notes, moving from soft to loud. The final note of the previous movement is a held unison F (dominant) which attaccas to:

which immediately transitions into this 3/8 Allegretto:

The "Malanconia" theme returns twice more -- each time abbreviated a bit more, until the 3/8 returns for good, Prestissimo  -- in the triumphant final bars: