The performers on this album, a string quartet, formed in 1998 when they were 13 years old and were assigned to play together at a school for music and dance.
Interpretation
The performers approach the music by first sight-reading it without preparation to capture their purest emotional reactions, which they then preserve during technical work.
Composer Biography
Beethoven started composing string quartets and symphonies relatively late, taking most of the 1790s to develop his musical language on the piano.
Composition History
Beethoven's Op. 18 string quartets were published in a set of six, a traditional practice for quartets at the time, and represent the last great quartet set of the classical period.
Compositional Technique
While adhering to the rules of Haydn and Mozart, Beethoven's Op. 18 quartets are distinctly 'Beethovenian' due to motive-driven development, emotional contrasts, expanded harmonic language, and structural experimentation.
Performer Biography
The string quartet on this album won first prize at the 2003 Franz Schubert and Modern Music Competition in Graz.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Beethoven's Op. 18 quartets showcase his ability to unify various musical elements into a compositional language that expresses extraordinary emotional depth.
