Joseph Haydn’s String Quartets, Op. 76 represent the apex of his evolution of the genre from birth to maturity. Below is the sum-up of a longer article written on “Classical notes” by Peter Gutman, discussing the nature of the string quartet, trace how it evolved through Haydn, and examine the Opus 76 #2 quartet on the November program.

The string quartets of Joseph Haydn afford a unique opportunity Classical Classicsin the annals of Western art – to trace the development of a major genre from birth to maturity, and all within the output of a single artist. A corollary benefit is to outline the evolution of a leading composer’s genius, since Haydn’s quartets extend from his very first to his very last published works.

Just what is a quartet?

The standard dictionary definition is merely a work written in four separate vocal or instrumental parts. But the string quartet, using an array of two violins, one viola and one cello, demands far more. Perhaps Goethe said it best: “a stimulating conversation between four intelligent people.” The limitations imposed by four stringed instruments appealed so much to Haydn’s sensitive mind that he often used the string quartet as a means of expressing his deepest and innermost thoughts.

Scholars trace the genesis of the quartet to many disparate roots. Works for four voices extend back to Pérotin in the late 12th century. Other examples of instrumental works specifying two violins, a viola and a cello are by Gregori Allegri (1582 – 1662), Franz Xavier Richter (1709-89) and others, all of which predate Haydn. Haydn’s work – melding technique and feeling, form and freedom, rules and imagination – is a synthesis of the extremes of two immediate predecessors – Georg Matthies Monn (1717-50), a master of technique but austere and cold, and Frantisck Xavier Dussek (1731-99), amateurish but full of feeling.

Most theorists trace the string quartet as having evolved from the Baroque trio sonata, which consisted of two melodic upper lines and a continuo of varying instrumentation comprised of virtually any lower voices (most often a harpsichord, but also organs, cellos, lutes or bassoons) to provide the harmonic base. Aside from the general impulsion of progress, the impetus for this development has been traced to the use of larger venues (and even the outdoors) where the continuo (especially a delicate harpsichord) would be sonically lost, a desire for structurally intricate music to stimulate musicians’ interest, and the emergence of the viola as a viable instrument rising above its accustomed role as a mere adjunct to the cello and part of the continuo.

How many quartets did Haydn write?

The general consensus seems to be 69, although older authorities tend to cite 83. The higher figure credited quartet arrangements of a symphony and a sextet with two horns (Op. 1, #s 3 and 5), the seven-movement “Last Words of Christ on the Cross” and early works now thought to be spurious, while overlooking the so-called “Op. 0” that emerged relatively recently.

Consistent with the publishing custom of the time, nearly all of Haydn’s quartets were released in sets of six, even though Haydn did not necessarily plan them as integral editions. Except for the unpublished “Op. 0,” his first ten authentic quartets (together with two arrangements) were issued as his Opus 1 and 2. While their exact dates of creation are not certain, they are believed to have been written between 1752 and 1760, possibly in 1757 when a Baron von Fürnberg asked Haydn to compose a work for four string players (including Haydn) for a music-making party at his castle. Significantly, the compositions are labeled in his manuscripts as “notturni” and in his thematic catalog initially as “cassatio” and later as “divertimenti a quarto.” Indeed, they bear a strong resemblance to the orchestral nocturnes, cassations and divertimentos of the time and Haydn clearly did not think of them as forging a new genre. Several modern commentators note that structurally they resemble suites, with the five traditional movements (allegro, minuet, adagio, another minuet, presto finale), all in major keys (except minuet trios), melodies characteristic of Austrian folksongs, much two-part harmony (often by doubling the two violins and viola/cello parts), imitative filler phrases of ascending and descending figures, and dominant violins whose occasional dialogues recall trio sonatas. Some have even posited that continuo parts should be inferred.

1770-72: Opuses 9, 17 and 20

Haydn’s next set of quartets, published as his Op. 9 came in 1770. In the interim decade he had entered the service of the royal Esterházy family and was installed in their castle, where he was expected to compose prolifically and produce appropriate music for their frequent entertainments. Haydn apparently recognized that his new set of quartets represented a quantum leap, as in his retirement he reportedly told his publisher Artaria to exclude all the predecessors from a planned collected set of his string quartet output. Opus 9 marks a new emphasis upon dialogue among instruments – ideas are not merely imitated or repeated but modified and developed as they are passed from voice to voice, and sequencing and modulation evolve into elaboration, all of which were to become hallmarks of the maturity of the medium. Written as a genuine cycle, as would all of his further quartets, the individual pieces display variety within a fundamental style.

In each of the next two years Haydn wrote six more quartets, published as his Opp. 17 and 20.

As many have noted, the figure of the sun on the title page of Op. 20 was fitting, as it boasted developments of vast significance to the genre and a symbolic birth of the true string quartet. Their many advances heralded by commentators include the emancipation of the cello and the emergence of its unique character, the achievement of parity of the four parts (enforced in part through the device of several fugal finales which, although a throwback to prior Baroque principles, emphasized equality of all instrumental lines), an awareness of the texture and tone quality of each instrument and the consequent emergence of its personality, an overall deepening of expression (perhaps most exemplified through increased use of the minor mode), the use of asymmetrical subjects to assert Haydn’s personality, and form that emerges from intensive motivic development rather than being imposed by outward architecture.

1781 : Opus 33

After this astounding outburst of discovery and excellence, Haydn wrote no further quartets for nine years. Hughes speculates that he may have succumbed to the demands of routine work for his Prince, or perhaps that his instinct demanded that he wait until he could reach a new plateau. Known as the “Russian Quartets,” not because of Slavic influence over their content, but merely because they were first played at the home of the Russian Prince and future Czar, Haydn described his next Op. 33 cycle as written in “a completely new and special style,” even though most scholars regard them more as a consolidation of his prior work than truly novel. Yet their quality is universally praised. They became hugely popular, appealing alike to connoisseurs and unsophisticated listeners, the demand generating dozens of transcriptions and four further editions in two years and stimulating others (including Mozart) to write quartets of their own. One writer even credits the Op. 33 cycle with launching one of the first known professional string quartets, which toured them (and other works) for eight months in private homes and public concerts in a number of cities, thus spreading Haydn’s growing celebrity yet further.

Haydn’s Op. 33 quartets were highly influential, but perhaps their greatest impact was upon Mozart, who met Haydn in 1781 and performed with him. (Talk about superstar concerts!) The two composers’ personalities and temperaments were diametric opposites: Mozart, who developed and wrote quickly, was young, moody, a flamboyant solo performer and a disorganized spendthrift, while Haydn, 24 years older, was deliberate, calm, steadfast, private, precise and thrifty. Yet, they loved each other’s work, Haydn famously proclaiming on a number of occasions that Mozart was the greatest composer of all, and Mozart reciprocating by asserting that it was only from Haydn that he learned to write quartets. (Indeed, scholars believe that Mozart may have been stimulated to write a set of six earlier quartets, K. 168-173, in response to Haydn’s Opp. 9 and 17.) The young admirer then embarked on his own first set of mature quartets, and after two years of highly uncharacteristic struggle produced six (K. 387, 421, 428, 458, 464 and 465) which he felt worthy of being dedicated to Haydn. Griffiths notes that while Haydn’s were carried forward by development, Mozart strove for balance and resolution, and of course they were suffused with his ineffable formal perfection and grace.

1787-90 : Opuses 42, 50, 54, 55 and 64

The huge impact of the Op. 33 set and its many imitations upped the ante for Haydn’s next quartets, which continued to consolidate his achievements in the genre. Thus, after another lengthy gap, during which he continued to pour out symphonies and a curious single quartet (Op. 42), his next six quartets (Op. 50 – 1787) focused on further unification by basing entire movements upon the components of a single theme, rather than contrasting ideas, and generally exploiting the resulting motifs to expand the development sections of sonata form movements. The next dozen, published as Opp. 54 and 55 (three each, 1788) and Op. 64 (six, 1790) are regarded as retrenchments in which the first violin resumes dominant brilliance, in part to gratify Johann Tost, a former Esterházy violinist who had become a wealthy merchant and who commissioned them. Incidentally, Op. 64 includes the thoroughly delightful “Lark” Quartet, which was the most popular of Haydn’s “early” quartets and thus played a crucial role in apprising concert-goers and record buyers of the vast world that preceded the widely-acknowledged final masterpieces.

1795-96 : Opuses 71 and 74

Haydn’s next quartets, published in two sets of three as Opp. 71 and 74, reflect a drastic change in the composer’s life. After his three decades of devoted service to the Esterházys his music-loving patron died, and the heir summarily dismissed the court musicians and relieved Haydn of his duties. Perhaps not enthused with the prospect of ending his life as a servant, Haydn turned down offers of new court appointments and instead accepted an opportune offer by Johann Peter Salomon, a German violinist turned English impresario, to come to London, where he was feted as artistic royalty. Written in 1795-6 upon his return to Vienna, the new sets of quartets were intended for a second London visit and reflect the freedom and cosmopolitan influences the former provincial servant had never known before. Of equal importance, they were aimed for public performance in vast concert halls before eager crowds rather than in the more intimate confines of a royal castle before invited dignitaries. This is immediately apparent from their opening notes – like his “London” symphonies, they begin with expectant hushed passages or bold introductory gestures, as if to briefly quiet a restive audience before settling down to business. The radical reorientation paved the way to Haydn’s final set of quartets, universally hailed as his masterpieces.

1796-97 : Opus 76

Commentators generally concur that Haydn’s next and final set is the greatest among his many quartet masterworks. Written in 1796 or 1797 (the autographs are lost and the chronology is somewhat speculative), they were commissioned by Count Joseph Erdödy who specified exclusive use for three years. Back from England, financially independent and liberated from servility and prior routine, Haydn was at last free to write as he wished and poured himself into the new quartets (as well as his most ambitious and ultimately most popular work of all, the “Creation” oratorio). The result was an intensification of his prior achievements with added weight and character. Each of the six quartets displays this fine balance between consolidation of the tradition Haydn already had created and his irrepressible drive toward yet further innovation, and boasts sufficient riches to warrant individual consideration.

Second Op. 76 quartet, in D minor

It is known as the “Quinten” (“Fifths”) for its distinctive opening motif of falling tonic and dominant open fifths which generate the entire work (and, perhaps not coincidentally, are the familiar sounds of Big Ben, whose pealing may have stuck in Haydn’s ears in London).

click to read the original article by peter gutman, including all his sources