Classical Music | Music for Quartet

Recorded on 03/04/2015, uploaded on 07/09/2015

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

In this pairing of works [of String Quartet no. 1 by Janáček and String Quartet in C Major, Op. 20, No. 2 by Haydn], the Omer Quartet would like to invite listeners to experience the ways in which two composers separated by a century, are inspired by the same conventions of conversation but in very different ways. As the title Chaos and Order suggests, the very moody and often hysterical quartet by Janáček makes use of musical material sparingly but, through the dialogue created, a powerfully unstable narrative is realized. Haydn’s Opus 20, No. 2, one of the famed “Sun Quartets”, uses the same idea of four instruments in conversation but in a much more refined and elegant convention, full of spontaneity and friendship.  It pervades the quartet, displaying an uplifting conversation among friends.

String Quartet in C Major, Op. 20, No. 2, Hob.III:32

I.     Moderato
II.     Adagio
III.     Menuetto
IV.     Fuga a quattro soggetti

This Haydn work, written in 1772, offers us a shining window into the art of conversation. The quartet medium grew increasingly popular as composers began to take advantage of the small ensemble to simulate conversations. The quartet offers great variety between movements, the first a kind of overture, the second an operatic scene one could imagine from a Greek tragedy, the third a courtly dance, and the final movement a whispered fugue. This work is extraordinary for displaying great equality in all parts, as well as more symmetry, which gives the work a more substantial structure.       Omer Quartet

Courtesy of International Music Foundation.