String Quartet in B flat major Op 18 No 6 (1799-1800)

For the first six or seven years of his career in Vienna Beethoven applied himself to just about every major instrumental and chamber-music form except the string quartet. It is as though he was respectfully waiting for Haydn to retire from the field before risking comparison with him, let alone challenging his supremacy. Written for the most part in 1799, at much the same time as Haydn was working on the last two quartets he would be able to complete, Beethoven’s Op.18 is an extraordinary mixture of deference to recent Viennese tradition and fresh thinking.

While Beethoven could scarcely have known Haydn’s two Op.77 Quartets at the time, the resemblance between the first movement of his Quartet in B flat and that of Haydn’s in G major Op.77 No.1 is striking. The opening idea, with violin and cello swapping a short theme between them while keeping in step with a steady rhythm in the inner parts, is basically the same in the two works. Interestingly, Beethoven does not risk the structural liberties taken by Haydn in his first movement. Unlike Haydn, he presents a well defined, fully characterised second subject and, although he excludes that new theme from the development, he is actually firmer than Haydn in drawing the conventional structural pattern here.

If the Adagio ma non troppo represents any advance on a Haydn or Mozart slow movement it is in the scoring. The challenge to serenity is represented not only by a conventional change of harmony from E flat major to E flat minor but also by the confrontation of the voluptuous textures of the opening section with the hollow sound of violin and cello in pianissimo octaves as they introduce the second theme.

Beethoven’s Scherzo here is a direct development of the quick Menuetto movements of Haydn’s later quartets, although none of the latter is as metrically disruptive as this busy Allegro with its fierce off-beat rhythmic emphases. What is entirely new, or even revolutionary, in this work is the Adagio introduction, headed “La Malinconia,” to the last movement. It is revolutionary not only in its harmonically disorientating expression of a personal confession but also in the way that it intrudes its melancholy on the Allegretto itself by making another appearance before the end.

as though he was respectfully waiting for Haydn to retire from the field before risking comparison with him, let alone challenging his supremacy. Written for the most part in 1799, at much the same time as Haydn was working on the last two quartets he would be able to complete, Beethoven’s Op.18 is an extraordinary mixture of deference to recent Viennese tradition and fresh thinking.

While Beethoven could scarcely have known Haydn’s two Op.77 Quartets at the time, the resemblance between the first movement of his Quartet in B flat and that of Haydn’s in G major Op.77 No.1 is striking. The opening idea, with violin and cello swapping a short theme between them while keeping in step with a steady rhythm in the inner parts, is basically the same in the two works. Interestingly, Beethoven does not risk the structural liberties taken by Haydn in his first movement. Unlike Haydn, he presents a well defined, fully characterised second subject and, although he excludes that new theme from the development, he is actually firmer than Haydn in drawing the conventional structural pattern here.

If the Adagio ma non troppo represents any advance on a Haydn or Mozart slow movement it is in the scoring. The challenge to serenity is represented not only by a conventional change of harmony from E flat major to E flat minor but also by the confrontation of the voluptuous textures of the opening section with the hollow sound of violin and cello in pianissimo octaves as they introduce the second theme.

Beethoven’s Scherzo here is a direct development of the quick Menuetto movements of Haydn’s later quartets, although none of the latter is as metrically disruptive as this busy Allegro with its fierce off-beat rhythmic emphases. What is entirely new, or even revolutionary, in this work is the Adagio introduction, headed “La Malinconia,” to the last movement. It is revolutionary not only in its harmonically disorientating expression of a personal confession but also in the way that it intrudes its melancholy on the Allegretto itself by making another appearance before the end.

For the first six or seven years of his career in Vienna Beethoven applied himself to just about every major instrumental and chamber-music form except the string quartet. It was as though both he and his patron Prince Lobkowitz, who commissioned not only Beethoven’s Op.18 but also Haydn’s Op.77 - their first and last quartets respectively - were respectfully waiting for Haydn to retire from the field before risking comparison with him, let alone challenging his supremacy. Written for the most part in 1799, at much the same time as Haydn was working on the last two quartets he would be able to complete, Beethoven’s Op.18 is an extraordinary mixture of deference to recent Viennese tradition and fresh thinking.

The last of the Op.18 set is a particularly intriguing example. While Beethoven could scarcely have known Haydn’s two Op.77 Quartets when he was writing it - they were not published until 1803 - the resemblance between the first movement of his Quartet in B flat and that of Haydn’s in G major Op.77 No.1 is striking. It is true that Beethoven’s Allegro con brio is quicker than Haydn’s march-like Allegro moderato, but the opening idea, with violin and cello swapping a short theme between them while keeping in step with a steady rhythm in the inner parts, is basically the same. Interestingly, Beethoven does not risk the structural liberties taken by Haydn in his first movement. Unlike Haydn, he presents a well defined, fully characterised second subject. Although he excludes that new theme from the development and although he varies his presentation of the first-subject material when he recapitulates it, Beethoven is actually firmer than Haydn in drawing the conventional structural pattern here.

If the Adagio ma non troppo represents any advance on a Haydn or Mozart slow movement it is in the scoring. The harmonic contrast between the first theme in E flat major and the second in E flat minor is common enough. The challenge to serenity is represented not only by the change of harmony but also by the confrontation of the voluptuous textures of the opening section with the hollow sound of violin and cello in pianissimo octaves as they introduce the second theme. According to convention, the harmonic differences will be reconciled before the end of the movement. The first violin is not prepared to wait to reconcile the textural differences, however, and sets about drawing the new material into its fussily seductive influence even before the harmonies revert to the major for the reprise of the main theme.

Beethoven’s Scherzo here is a direct development of the quick Menuetto movements of Haydn’s later quartets, although none of the latter is as metrically disruptive as this busy Allegro with its fierce off-beat rhythmic emphases. What is entirely new, or even revolutionary, in this work is the Adagio introduction, headed “La Malinconia,” to the last movement. It is revolutionary not only in its harmonically disorientating expression of a personal confession, whatever inspired it, but also in the way that it intrudes its melancholy on the Allegretto itself by making another appearance before the end. It is so unsettling that it takes a brief but vociferous prestissimo coda to cast it out.

For the first six or seven years of his career in Vienna Beethoven applied himself to just about every major instrumental and chamber-music form except the string quartet. He wrote piano sonatas, cello sonatas, violin sonatas, piano trios and string trios but conscientiously avoided the string quartet. It was as though both he and his patron Prince Lobkowitz, who commissioned not only Beethoven’s Op.18 but also Haydn’s Op.77 - their first and last quartets respectively - were respectfully waiting for Haydn to retire from the field before challenging his supremacy or even risking comparison with him. Written for the most part in 1799, at much the same time as Haydn was working on the last two quartets he would be able to complete, Beethoven’s Op.18 is an extraordinary mixture of deference to recent Viennese tradition and fresh thinking.

The last of the Op.18 set is a particularly intriguing example. While Beethoven could scarcely have known Haydn’s two Op.77 Quartets when he was writing it - they were not published until 1803 - the resemblance between the first movement of his Quartet in B flat and that of Haydn’s in G major Op.77 No.1 is striking. It is true that Beethoven’s Allegro con brio is quicker than Haydn’s march-like Allegro moderato, but the opening idea, with violin and cello swapping a short theme between them while keeping in step with a steady rhythm in the inner parts, is basically the same. Interestingly, Beethoven does not risk the structural liberties taken by Haydn in his first movement. Unlike Haydn, he presents a well defined, fully characterised second subject. Although he excludes that new theme from the development and although he varies his presentation of the first-subject material when he recapitulates it, Beethoven is actually firmer than Haydn in drawing the conventional structural pattern here.

If the Adagio ma non troppo represents any advance on a Haydn or Mozart slow movement it is in the scoring. The harmonic contrast between the first theme in E flat major and the second in E flat minor is common enough. The challenge to serenity is represented not only by the change of harmony but also by the confrontation of the voluptuous textures of the opening section with the hollow sound of violin and cello in pianissimo octaves as they introduce the second theme. According to convention, the harmonic differences will be reconciled before the end of the movement. The first violin is not prepared to wait to reconcile the textural differences, however, and sets about drawing the new material into its fussily seductive influence even before the harmonies revert to the major for the reprise of the main theme.

Beethoven’s Scherzo here is a direct development of the quick Menuetto movements of Haydn’s later quartets, although none of the latter is as metrically disruptive as this busy Allegro with its fierce off-beat rhythmic emphases. What is entirely new, or even revolutionary, in this work is the Adagio introduction, headed “La Malinconia,” to the last movement. It is revolutionary not only in its harmonically disorientating personal confession, whatever inspired it, but also in the way that it intrudes its melancholy on the Allegretto itself by making another appearance before the end. It is so unsettling that it takes a brief but vociferous prestissimo coda to cast it out.