Beethoven's Op. 59 quartets, dedicated to Count Andrey Razumovsky (the Russian ambassador in Vienna), were considered "the music of a madman" by some contemporary commentators due to their technical difficulty and fragmented exchanges.
Compositional Technique
The 'Harp' Quartet, Op. 74, is Beethoven's only quartet to conclude with a set of variations on an original theme, alternating energetic and lyrical sections where the melody can sometimes disappear entirely.
Composition History
The Quartet No. 10, Op. 74, known as the 'Harp' quartet, was composed during the War of the Fifth Coalition and the occupation of Vienna by Napoleon's troops.
Composition History
The six string quartets, Op. 18, were not composed in the order they were published; the D major quartet (No. 3) is thought to have been written first.
Composer's Artistic Vision
The Galitzin Quartets, including Op. 132, are seen as a kind of intimate diary where Beethoven's moods intermingle without apparent order, reflecting the "Confessions of a multiple soul" as perceived by Romain Rolland.
Compositional Technique
Beethoven's Op. 18 No. 2 quartet, despite revisions, shows an exceptional mastery of counterpoint and a personal sense of expression and humor, with its finale described by the composer as an "unbuttoned" Viennese dance.
Composition History
The Quartet, Op. 132, was commissioned by Prince Nikolai Borisovich Galitzin (Golitsyn) in November 1822, as part of a set of three quartets.
