Oskar Adler, a medical doctor and expert string player, was an important early mentor to Schoenberg, encouraging him to play in a string quartet.
Composition History
Schoenberg's String Quartet No. 3 was commissioned by American patron Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge, foreshadowing his later refuge in the US from the Nazis.
Instruments
The Gringolts Quartet performs on historical instruments, including a 1719 Stradivarius violin and a 1600 Maggini cello.
Composition History
Schoenberg associated the first movement of his String Quartet No. 3 with a childhood image from a fairy tale, 'The Ghost Ship,' where a captain was nailed to a mast.
Album & Artwork
The album cover features an image by Vasily Kandinsky, an artist who was deeply influenced by Schoenberg's music.
Recording & Production
This recording is a co-production with Radio SRF 2 Kultur and was made in March 2021 at the SRF Studio in Zürich, Switzerland.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Schoenberg, as a teacher, emphasized understanding traditional techniques while transforming them to suit the 20th century.
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