# Haydn - string quartets



## juliante

It has taken me several years of listening to chamber music to finally realise how wonderful Haydn's string quartets are. But I have not explored many. I know and love:

The Sun op 20 no 4
The Joke op 33 no 2
Razor op 55 no 2
The Lark op 64 no 5
Fifths op op 70 no 2
Sunrise op 76 no 4

Any other recommendations? Particularly from earlier opuses. I am not keen on Emperor. 

Many thanks


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## bharbeke

54-56 (Hob. 69-71, Op. 71) are all great. I share your enjoyment of The Lark.


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## Tchaikov6

I am listening right now to the Op. 64 Quartets, right now I am on No. 1 in C Major. I love it very much, and I like all the Op. 64 Quartets (I see the Lark on your list). 
Fifths Quartet is actually Op. 76, No. 2- I got to play this quartet and it is my favorite of Haydn's. Chilling and tense first movement, with a beautiful second movement, a scherzo filled with contrast, and the last movement, which although mostly in a minor key I think of as light and cheery.


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## whispering

Op33 is a great selection of string quartets. A mixture a little like Op18 from Beethoven. Something in there for all ears. Put the CD on and fall into the music. I would not recommend the earlier Op 17 and 20 string quartets. In comparison with later works these are definitely "earlier works" if you know what I am saying.


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## Brahmsian Colors

Looks like you've already started listening to the Opus 20 ("Sun") quartets. I like most of them as well. Otherwise, you might find the opus 50 or "Prussian" Quartets quite enjoyable....Have you gotten to the Piano Trios yet? So much to satisfy there also, especially as played by the Beaux Arts Trio. Marvelous!


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## Pugg

> I am not keen on Emperor.


 Unbelievable, one of the most gorgeous pieces Haydn wroth.


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## juliante

Haydn67 said:


> Looks like you've already started listening to the Opus 20 ("Sun") quartets. I like most of them as well. Otherwise, you might find the opus 50 or "Prussian" Quartets quite enjoyable....Have you gotten to the Piano Trios yet? So much to satisfy there also, especially as played by the Beaux Arts Trio. Marvelous!


Thanks. Never listened to a Haydn trio...


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## juliante

For some reason I don't care for the variations


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## juliante

juliante said:


> For some reason I don't care for the variations


 in reply to pugg


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## juliante

Is there a good recording of op 33? :tiphat:


whispering said:


> Op33 is a great selection of string quartets. A mixture a little like Op18 from Beethoven. Something in there for all ears. Put the CD on and fall into the music. I would not recommend the earlier Op 17 and 20 string quartets. In comparison with later works these are definitely "earlier works" if you know what I am saying.


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## Mal

juliante said:


> Is there a good recording of op 33? :tiphat:


I like the Lindsays second foray through Haydn's quartets, including Op.33. It was Stephen Chakwin who pointed these out to me in the "Third Ear" guide. I've found him to be a very good guide to Haydn's music. The Kodaly on Naxos aren't bad, but the Lindsays usually have the edge in power, freedom, and insight. I disagree with the poster who dissed Op.20, I thought it was up on the same level as the later quartets, or near enough, Chakwin starts his survey of masterpieces at that point. Maybe Op.17 is a bit early, I don't know, I'm trusting Chakwin and haven't looked at the early quartets. So that's all of Op. 22, 33, 50, 54,55, 64, 71,74, 76, 77, at least, that are "not to be missed", and hear them played by the Lindsays it at all possible, otherwise the Kodaly will do. (When's the big Lindsays box coming out )


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## Brahmsian Colors

juliante said:


> Thanks. Never listened to a Haydn trio...


I was never a fan of Haydn, until I discovered his Piano Trios, and couldn't believe the turn around in my affections. I then moved on to his String Quartets and experienced further enjoyment. But it didn't stop there. I found his Piano Sonatas absolutely captivating as well, despite the fact I had previously never been a big fan of the piano....Eventually, I connected with Mozart's chamber works, and found a treasure trove there too, though I do find Haydn somewhat more fulfilling overall.


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## Mal

I also have the Beaux Arts Trio box set of Haydn, and rate it very highly, but be careful. Gramophone says, "Frankly, most of the works on the first three discs, here, almost all dating from the 1760s, or even earlier (which for a late developer like Haydn means pre-puberty), are no more than agreeable background music."

https://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/haydn-the-43-piano-trios

I agree with this estimation, and might add disk 4 to the background music category. So for the first four disks I found about 1 out of 4 were up to the standard of his Op.20 and after string quartets. With the last five disks about 3 out of 4 are first class. So have patience!

"Six of the nine discs here contain well over an hour of glorious, enriching music, much of the playing is extraordinarily felicitous, and the recording has Philips's customary warmth and refinement... £70 or so may seem a lot to fork out all at once; but, as RL suggested back in 1979, this is a set that should last a lifetime.'"

That price has gone way down in today's buyer's market. Just looked on amazon.com and it's now available new at $26.38!


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## Mandryka

Mal said:


> (which for a late developer like Haydn means pre-puberty),


How do we know when Haydn went through puberty?

In 1760 he was nearly 30, about the same age as when Mozart wrote the quartets dedicated to Haydn . . .


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## Mandryka

juliante said:


> Any other recommendations? Particularly from earlier opuses. I am not keen on Emperor.
> 
> Many thanks


You're not getting much help here, and I don't know the quartets with opus numbers smaller than op 20. If you're interested in op 20 I can enthusiastically recommend the Chiaroscuro Quartet, which to me was a real revelation. The op 20 fugues are tremendous.

The Emperor is a strange thing because of the repetition, it reminds me of Schubert. In fact I've not heard it for years and years, I'm not crazy about it.


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## Brahmsian Colors

Mandryka said:


> The Emperor is a strange thing because of the repetition...I'm not crazy about it.


Agree. The repetitiveness causes me to lose interest in it.


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## Mal

Mandryka said:


> How do we know when Haydn went through puberty?
> 
> In 1760 he was nearly 30, about the same age as when Mozart wrote the quartets dedicated to Haydn . . .


I think he was being metaphorical. Puberty could have been at age 30 for *musical* development.

From Wikipedia: 'By 1749, Haydn had matured physically to the point that he was no longer able to sing high choral parts. Empress Maria Theresa herself complained to Reutter about his singing, calling it "crowing".' So that might be when actual puberty set in 

'Haydn struggled at first, working at many different jobs: as a music teacher, as a street serenader, and eventually, in 1752 [age 20], as valet-accompanist for the Italian composer Nicola Porpora, from whom he later said he learned "the true fundamentals of composition"... While a chorister, Haydn had not received any systematic training in music theory and composition.'

So looks like a late developer to me.

Are you suggesting his first works from the early 1760s are all great works equivalent to what Mozart was writing at around the age of 30? If so, I'm afraid I just don't hear it! Sounds, to me, more like what Mozart was writing as a teenager.


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## classfolkphile

I like most of Haydn's String Quartets, so take the following with that caveat.

As an earlier poster suggested, the Op. 33 are excellent. I also enjoy the Op. 20 and think they fall into the mature portion of his work. The Op. 17 may fairly be said to be early works but I find them enjoyable nonetheless, even though they're lighter. (The Tatrai capture their spirit well.)

One set that is a favorite is the Op. 55, particularly by the Panocha Qt. (they did not record much Hadyn, quite unfortunately). And the Op. 51 (The Seven Last Words) I could not be without, although it's not in the form of a classic string quartet. Here I prefer the Mosaiques or Lindsay.

Overall, for most of the quartets, including the excellent later ones, I now find the Auryn Qt. to be the best. I have and also like many quartets by the Lindsay, Festetics, Mosaiques (_not_ in Op. 33 however), and Tatrai. The Kodaly are very good in some (Op. 33) and terrible in others (Op. 20, Op. 74): in general they're behind the others mentioned. The Festetics and Mosaiques fall into the HIP category fwiw.


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## Alydon

If you want a totally different Haydn quartet listening experience it is well worth investigating recording made by the Pro Arte Quartet in the 1930s. I invested in the whole set and they offer a good chunk of the complete quartets, and although the sound is primitive and repeats are missing it takes you back to a totally different style of interpretation never heard these days.


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## Judith

I have a Haydn String Quartets album performed by Endellion String Quartet. It has
No 1 G Major opus 76
No 4 D Major opus 20
No 5 D Major opus 64
Incomplete String Quartet in D Minor opus 103

Very good album by a good string quartet!


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## ldiat

juliante said:


> It has taken me several years of listening to chamber music to finally realise how wonderful Haydn's string quartets are. But I have not explored many. I know and love:
> 
> The Sun op 20 no 4
> The Joke op 33 no 2
> Razor op 55 no 2
> The Lark op 64 no 5
> Fifths op op 70 no 2
> Sunrise op 76 no 4
> 
> Any other recommendations? Particularly from earlier opuses. I am not keen on Emperor.
> 
> Many thanks


one of the comments from you tube about "The Joke op 33 no 2" is 
"Haydn, you sly *******...﻿"


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## Pugg

​
A must have.


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## Mandryka

Mal said:


> Are you suggesting his first works from the early 1760s are all great works equivalent to what Mozart was writing at around the age of 30?


Certainly not!

.........


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## Mandryka

Alydon said:


> If you want a totally different Haydn quartet listening experience it is well worth investigating recording made by the Pro Arte Quartet in the 1930s. I invested in the whole set and they offer a good chunk of the complete quartets, and although the sound is primitive and repeats are missing it takes you back to a totally different style of interpretation never heard these days.


Quoted for truth


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## TurnaboutVox

I am fond of Op. 51 (The Seven Last Words...) and especially so of the Op. 77 pair. The Kodaly Quartet are good in Op. 51; I'm not sure I've yet found a completely convincing Op. 77 recording. I have the Smithsonian Quartet, for now.

In Op. 20 and Op. 33 I now swear by the London Haydn Quartet over the much-vaunted Quatuor Mosaiques, but it's a matter of taste and I know quite a few people who think the QM are best in that repertoire.


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## JayBee

TurnaboutVox said:


> I am fond of Op. 51 (The Seven Last Words...) and especially so of the Op. 77 pair. The Kodaly Quartet are good in Op. 51; I'm not sure I've yet found a completely convincing Op. 77 recording. I have the Smithsonian Quartet, for now.
> 
> In Op. 20 and Op. 33 I now swear by the London Haydn Quartet over the much-vaunted Quatuor Mosaiques, but it's a matter of taste and I know quite a few people who think the QM are best in that repertoire.


I am listening to the London Haydn Quartet's recording of Opus 54 and 55 and find their sound and sense pure joy to listen to. Taking nothing away from the Quatuor Mosaiques, whose (expensive!) Haydn recordings I also have, but there is something in the London group that vaults them to the top of my preferred listening list.


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