A New Chapter Begins

Donald Macleod starts his survey of Haydn’s string quartets with the composer's return to the form after some years, and excerpts from op 33/2 and op 51/1 as well as the fourth of his Prussian Quartets, opus 50.

From his opus 0 and opus 1 of the 1750s to his unfinished opus 103 of 1803, Haydn’s 68 string quartets span the major part of his compositional life. While he wasn’t the inventor of the form, he’s fully deserving of the epithet, the “father of the string quartet” as he elevated the form to new heights. It’s his ideas that take the quartet from its 18th century antecedents to the conventions that are rather more familiar to us today. The conversational textures he created redefined the relationship between the four instruments. Always aware of his surroundings, and other musical influences, he used ideas and rhythms from folk music, dance, opera, the instrumental concerto and other genres for larger forces. He established a sequence of movements, and within them, adapted sonata form, as well as making use of the minuet-trio, the variation, the rondo and fugue forms. Original, serious, yet with his trademark, irresistible humour never too far away, Haydn’s quartets make up a unique body of work that justly receive both admiration and appreciation.

Across the week Donald Macleod enjoys a masterclass in string quartet writing from one of the great masters of the form. His survey of Haydn includes complete performances of opus 50 no 4 - a quartet written for a King in the grandest of styles, the brilliant and theatrically inspired op 64, no 2, and the spritely and playful Lark Quartet. The versatile composer produced opus 71 no 2 with the largest of concert spaces in mind, and the series concludes with the second of Haydn’s opus 76 quartets, the last complete set he wrote, and widely regarded as being among the supreme accomplishments of his career.

In 1781 Haydn was about to embark on a series of business deals that would disseminate his music across Europe, and make him one of the most famous and most popular composers. It seemed the moment was right for him to return to writing for string quartets.

String Quartet in E flat, op 33 no 2 ("The Joke")
IV: Presto
The Lindsays

The Seven Last Words of Christ Hob XX.2 arr. for string quartet
Sonata I: Vater, vergib innen
Cuarteto Casals

String Quartet, op 54 no 1 in G
II: Allegretto
Emerson Quartet

Symphony no 98
Adagio
Concertgebouw Orchestra
Colin Davis, conductor

Symphony no 94 in G major (Surprise)
II: Andante
Concertgebouw Orchestra
Nikolaus Harnoncourt, conductor

String Quartet, op 50 no 4 in F sharp minor
Amati Quartet

Producer: Johannah Smith for BBC Wales