Hoffmann's father, Carl Anton Hoffmann, was an influential counsellor at the court of the Prince-Elector and ensured his seven children received private education.
Recording & Production
This recording was produced by Annette Schumacher and engineered by Manfred Schumacher, and was recorded in January 2011 at the Evangelical Church Honrath.
Composer Biography
Heinrich Anton Hoffmann, a violin virtuoso and composer, was born in Mainz in June 1770, only a few months before Ludwig van Beethoven.
Composer Biography
Hoffmann met Wolfgang Amadé Mozart in Frankfurt in 1790 during the coronation of Leopold II and performed with him in a private concert.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Hoffmann's compositional style, especially in his String Quartets Op. 3, is considered highly modern for its time, showing formal variability and harmonic flexibility.
Compositional Technique
Hoffmann's String Quartets Op. 3 demonstrate a preference for chromaticism, which allowed him to achieve diverse moods and even mood swings, making his melodic lines more expressive.
Compositional Technique
The second string quartet in this collection begins with a mysterious Adagio in B-flat minor, a key that Beethoven never used.
