# Classical/early romantic string quartets



## Kjetil Heggelund (Jan 4, 2016)

I know pretty well the quartets of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn. I don't regard Schumann as early romantic, so I didn't mention him (...but I did). Also Cherubini has at least 6 nice quartets. I'd like to hear about other composers from the time who are probably overlooked (at least by me).


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## cougarjuno (Jul 1, 2012)

Boccherini and Hummel

Boccherini wrote many string quartets and most of his works are devoted to chamber music. Hummel only wrote three but his chamber music is also worthwhile. Both are engaging composers.


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## Kjetil Heggelund (Jan 4, 2016)

Thanks! I forgot about Boccherini since I mainly listen to trios and quintets by him, and with Hummel it's piano trios. I also like them when I want "something new and old"


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## cougarjuno (Jul 1, 2012)

Another prolific chamber music composer of that era is Anton Reicha, known mostly for wind quintets but there are string quartets also. He's definitely worth a listen.

Also Ludwig Spohr is a wonderful composer. I have his trios and pieces with violin and harp and much of his symphonic music but there are quartets. More than most composers of the era Spohr is unjustifiably neglected


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## Quartetfore (May 19, 2010)

I will second the motion on the Hummel quartets, the 3rd of the set is very enjoyable. The works seem to me just on the cusp of the transition from the "Classsical" style to the early "Romantic" style. Norbert Burgmuller a composer who died much to soon, wrote 4 Quartets. he was a student of Spohr, and his works do reflect Spohrs style a bit but I think that they are much finer works.


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## RICK RIEKERT (Oct 9, 2017)

Friedrich Ernst Fesca, who died in 1826 from consumption at the age of 37, composed what are to me at least some of the finest string quartets of that time.


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## newyorkconversation (Dec 6, 2017)

Putting in a plug for George Onslow ("the French Beethoven" in some eyes in the 1820's), as well as quartets by Ignaz Pleyel himself (Haydn's pupil who became a successful publisher in Paris). 

Seconding the Spohr recommendation with one correction: it's Louis Spohr (not Ludwig). He invented both the violin chinrest and the conductor's baton!

Rounding this out, I have quartets by Johann Kalliwoda, Ernst Wilhelm Wolf, Florian Leopold Gassman and Pavel Vranicky in my "Quatours Obscurs" list.


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## Kjetil Heggelund (Jan 4, 2016)

So thank you people! Even though I never get tired of the ones I mentioned, it's always nice to hear something new


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## Nate Miller (Oct 24, 2016)

There's a guitar composer, Mauro Giuliani, who was working in Vienna in the early 1800s. He was good friends with Rossini, and Beethoven, and he did some collaborations with Hummel, which is why I thought I'd mention him. He was working with a lot of the people mentioned in this thread so far.

He did not write a string quartet, but his Grand Quintetto (op 65) is basically a string quartet with a guitar player.

If you are looking for some chamber music from that period that is really nice to listen to, then check out some Giuliani works for violin and guitar, and also flute and guitar. He even wrote for piano and guitar.

this record by Itzhak Perlman and John Williams has Giuliani's Duo Concertate, and has been in my record collection since I was in school

https://www.amazon.com/Paganini-Giuliani-Duos-Violin-Guitar/dp/B00138JD3I/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1523451954&sr=8-5&keywords=perlman+++john+williams

of course if you are strictly looking for string quartets, then nevermind all this


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## RICK RIEKERT (Oct 9, 2017)

Giuliani is often compared to another great virtuoso, Paganini, who wrote 15 entertaining string quartets for violin, viola, cello, and guitar. Granted, not the usual arrangement, but the last time I looked my guitar had strings. He also wrote 3 string quartets in the usual format.


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## wkasimer (Jun 5, 2017)

Another composer is the "Spanish Mozart", Juan Crisóstomo Arriaga. He died very young (just short of his 20th birthday), but left three fine string quartets.


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## Kjetil Heggelund (Jan 4, 2016)

Nate Miller said:


> There's a guitar composer, Mauro Giuliani, who was working in Vienna in the early 1800s. He was good friends with Rossini, and Beethoven, and he did some collaborations with Hummel, which is why I thought I'd mention him. He was working with a lot of the people mentioned in this thread so far.
> 
> He did not write a string quartet, but his Grand Quintetto (op 65) is basically a string quartet with a guitar player.
> 
> ...


I'm also a classical guitarist Nate, and know about Giuliani (of course). I love Giuliani, who unfortunately just isn't popular with modern guitarists, it seems. I'm actually very interested in guitar with string quartet, and have many scores, just not a string quartet  but that's going to change soon.


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## Kjetil Heggelund (Jan 4, 2016)

We should make a chamber music with guitar thread!


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## Nate Miller (Oct 24, 2016)

RICK RIEKERT said:


> Giuliani is often compared to another great virtuoso, Paganini, who wrote 15 entertaining string quartets for violin, viola, cello, and guitar. Granted, not the usual arrangement, but the last time I looked my guitar had strings. He also wrote 3 string quartets in the usual format.


Paganini actually played guitar. I've played a lot of his guitar sonatas, and he certainly understood what was idiomatic, and guitar is hard to write for if you don't play one yourself. But his sonatas for violin and guitar (op2 and op 3) have some violin parts that are very difficult. I play with violinists, but its still hard to find any takers for a Paganini sonata

Believe me, once you do the work to be able to play one, you feel like you should get an Olympic medal. :lol:

Giuliani's music, on the other hand, is pretty playable. Even the concert works are manageable

I think that Giuliani and Paganini wrote more for the violin/guitar duo than anyone else I can think of. Giuliani was the better guitar player and Paganini was clearly a better violinist, and the works they published I think bear that out, but the fact that both men played both instruments is why we have so much repertoire from those two composers for violin and guitar. Its sort of rare to find composers that wrote a lot for that instrument combination


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## Nate Miller (Oct 24, 2016)

Kjetil Heggelund said:


> I'm also a classical guitarist Nate, and know about Giuliani (of course). I love Giuliani, who unfortunately just isn't popular with modern guitarists, it seems. I'm actually very interested in guitar with string quartet, and have many scores, just not a string quartet  but that's going to change soon.


I never understood why Giuliani isn't as popular. I love playing his music. I have a duet with a violinist, and this spring we are putting together a program of all Giuliani music for violin and guitar. Its some great stuff.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

I like Johann Baptist Vanhal's orchestral works, so I Googled string quartets, and it turns out he wrote around 100 of them. Is anyone familiar with any of these?


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## Kjetil Heggelund (Jan 4, 2016)

Nate Miller said:


> I never understood why Giuliani isn't as popular. I love playing his music. I have a duet with a violinist, and this spring we are putting together a program of all Giuliani music for violin and guitar. Its some great stuff.


Violin and guitar is up next for me too, in the autumn. I already sent the violinist scores by Schubert (Sonatina in D arr. by Mats Bergström) and Paganini (Cantabile). 
Maybe Beethoven is too popular and other music from the time seems simple and easy, and doesn't have the furious, romantic vibe...


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## Nate Miller (Oct 24, 2016)

The Cantabile in D major? That's a nice piece. Its on that same Perlman/Williams record I was telling you about, so I've listened to it since I was a teenager, but never played it

and I didn't know there were some arrangements of Schubert for this instrument combination. I know of a lot of guitar transcriptions, and I have the collection of Schubert lieder transcribed by Napoleon Coste....but I didn't know there was material for violin and guitar duets.....thanks for mentioning that. We're starting to look ahead to "what's next" after the Giuliani music we are doing this spring


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## Kjetil Heggelund (Jan 4, 2016)

Friedrich Ernst Fesca is the man! Really like no. 7, my first encounter with this composer. Found out it's from 1817. The publisher says he was seen as a successor to Haydn & Mozart, and that's exactly what I wanted! He made at least 15 quartets, as I saw on volume 1 of complete recording. Didn't find vol. 2.


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## tortkis (Jul 13, 2013)

cougarjuno said:


> Another prolific chamber music composer of that era is Anton Reicha, known mostly for wind quintets but there are string quartets also. He's definitely worth a listen.


I purchased download of Quatuor Ardeo's recording. The album contains Reicha's early & late quartets: Op. 49 No. 1 (1804-5), Op. 90 (1819), and Op. 94 (1824). I think these works are very good, sounding like dynamic Haydn, and the performance is eloquent and sensitive. The beginning of Op. 49, No. 1 in C minor sounds very similar to that of Mozart's piano concerto No. 24 in C minor K491. Intentional quotation?

I first checked out Kreutzer Quartet's recordings, but the short samples did not sound good (rather dull) to me. The album cover says "Complete String Quartets", but I could find only 2 albums containing 4 quartets, while Reicha composed about 20 quartets. I think they are worth recording by good string quartet groups.


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