April 2012

The String Quartets Dedicated To Haydn-Part II

So, what were the quartets dedicated to Haydn like?

1. Gottlob Bachmann (1763-1840) wrote some 13 string quartets. Fetis, author of Biographie Universell des Musiciens, states Bachmann's work was largely imitative and that in his later works he adopted a simpler style.

2. Angelo Benincori 1779-1821 met Haydn in Vienna and felt inspired by this to try to improve  his  own  compositions, the result being his the six quartets of Op.8. These works have much in common with the Italian opera overture. There are catchy tunes and although they are not "quatours brillant", the inner parts are less interesting.

3. Johann Brandl (1760-1837) set of quartets, the Op.17, is preceded by a dedicatory eulogy that, like Mozart's dedication, refers to these quartets as his children. At one time Brandl's music enjoyed a high reputation in Germany, but it must be said that he imitated Mozart and Haydn and was said to have copied out their quartets for study purposes.

4. Joseph Eybler (1765-1846) was a distant cousin of Haydn and wrote 7 string quartets of which the 3 composing his Op.1 were dedicated to the master. Edition Silvertrust offers the first two of the set. Op.1 No.1 (you can hear soundbites by clicking on the link) opens with a brief Adagio introduction that leads to the main section, a bright Allegro. The Menuetto which follows begins with an echo of the second theme from the first movement. The third movement, Adagio cantabile is quite lyrical. The Finale is a theme and set of variations, quite unusual for the time. Op.1 No.2 opens with a brooding, powerful Allegro. The second movement, Adagio non molto, is played muted and relieves the tremendous intensity of the first movement. But the Menuetto which comes next is a thrusting affair which, with its strong imitative two part writing, anticipates Haydn's Witch,s Minuet of his Op.76 No.2. The quartet closes with a highly dramatic and effective Allegro.

5. Ferdinand Fraenzl (1767-1833) according to the French musical lexicographer Vidal, author of Les Instruments a Archet, claims that he dedicated a set of quartets, Op.5, to Haydn.While there are some occasional good effects, these are pretty ordinary works and probably not worth reviving.

6. Franz Grill [1757-1795] according to Fetis modelled his compositional style on Haydn. His Op.3 quartets though dedicated to Haydn,  show no familiarity with the advances made by either Mozart or Haydn. They are written in the old concertante, with each voice being given solo passages to what is usually a simple accompaniment. Still, these works show the touch of a gifted melodist and also have interesting rhythmic flourishes. It is the strength of the melodic writing along with these small original touches, reminiscent of the Wranitzky brothers for whom Grill briefly worked, that make these works worth revisiting.

7. Adalbert Gyrowetz [1763-1850] lived long enough to note in his own autobiography that his music had completely disappeared from the concert stage. His quartets are melodious and pleasing, although quite a number of them are in the concertante style where interest in the inner parts is created only by giving them occasional solo passages. He is said to have composed over 60 string quartets. His Op.2 set is dedicated to Haydn.

8. Peter Haensel ( also Hänsel, 1770-1831) studied with Haydn who wrote a great number of string quartets. His compositions are conservative for the time they were written (1798-1820) Though taking Haydn as a starting pointfew listeners would ever  mistake them for works of Haydn. The part writing is generally good for all players, but the thematic material is often rather simple. Like the Wrantizky brothers, Haensel often creates little touches that prevent his compositions from being merely routine, particularly in the accompanying parts.

9. Hyacinthe Jadin (1769-1802) came from a prominent musical family that includes his brother Louis Emanuel.  He composed 12 string quartets, four sets of three, which were published between 1795 and 1800 as his Op.1-4. The first of these sets was dedicated to Haydn. Edition Silvertrust publishes Op.1 No.3. Op.1 No.3 (click on the link to hear soundbites) is perhaps the most striking because of its unusual Menuet and its finale, a Polacca and its fine treatment of the cello which was very rare for the time, especially in France. The opening movement, Allegro moderato, is noteworthy for its interesting conversation between the first violin and the cello, while the second movement, has a slow, haunting unisono melody doubled and played in octaves. The finale, is a brilliantly scored Polacca .

10.  Otto von Kospoth (1753-1817) held a position to the Kings of Prussia for several decades. Besides being a composer Kospoth was also an alchemist who believed himself to be impervious to fire. He died inside a burning building. Haydn's visit to the cello-playing Friedrich Wilhelm and gift to the king of his six Op.50 quartets was the inspiration for Kospoth dedicated his six Op.8 quartets to Haydn. They are well-written but the thematic material is rather pedestrian.

11. Johann Mederitsch (1765-1835) wrote more than 20 string quartets. He was especially fond of fugues and most of his quartets have fugal movements, sometimes more than one. His Op.6 quartets, a set of three, were dedicated to Haydn but, all and all, the thematic material is rather uninspired and there is really no reason to try and revive these works.

12. Mozart and his famous Six Quartets Dedicated to Haydn (K.385, 421, 428, 458, 464 and 465) need no comment. He and they are certainly well enough known.

13, Ignaz Pleyel’s (1757-1831) dedicated his Op.2 string quartets to Haydn. set of six string quartets the year before Mozart published his., The date of this publication is 1784, which thus precedes Mozart by one year. Mozart once predicted that Pleyel would be the "Next Haydn" but of course this did not happen. After composing quite a lot of music, Pleyel left Austria for Paris where he founded a piano factory. Like many composers, the rap against Pleyel is that his works are quite uneven in quality. This said, Pleyel produced several works which the critics of the time, including Mozart, found to be quite good. His quartets are not as substantial as those of Haydn or Mozart and are usually in 3 movements. Some have only two movements and this is particularly likely to occur where the second movement is a set of variations. In such cases Pleyel usually adopts a concertante style with each instrument having its own variation. While his melodies are often quite simple, they usuallyare pleasing and sometimes he does achieve genuine conversational episodes between the different parts a la Haydn.

14. Felice Radicati (1778-1823) wrote several string quartets but his three Op.16 quartets, dedicated to Haydn, are the best of what he produced. But even so, these are not works which would justify revival.

15. Andreas Romberg (1767-1821), like most of his contemporaries was a prolific composer. He wrote nearly 30 string quartets, which given the number of editions they went through, must have been fairly popular in their own time. Romberg is the subject of a famous Haydn anecdote. At a concert evening Haydn programmed what he led the audience to believe was a new quartet by him. It was only after the work had been performed to much acclaim and applause that Haydn informed them the actual composer was Andreas Romberg. Some commentators have said that this particular quartet was part of the three quartet Op.2 set dedicated to Haydn. It seems hard to believe that anyone could mistake Romberg's Op.2 for the works of Haydn but apparently the audience did. The Op.2 quartets are typicalof Romberg’s work. They are tuneful, the part writing is interesting and unlike some of his other quartets, they are not “Quatuors brilliant”. (quartets which are solo vehicles for the first violin) Romberg was enjoyed a consdierable career as a soloist. The famous violinist and composer Louis Spohr is said to have found the Romberg's quartets attractive.

16. Bernhard Romberg (1767-1841), Andreas' cousin, is today known only to cellists and was himself one of the foremost virtuosi of his day. He wrote 11 string quartets, of which the first three, his Op.1, are dedicated to Haydn. Most of his quartets are pleasantly tuneful but they suffer from the need for two virtuoso players, as both the first violinist and the cellist must have considerable technical ability, above the average demands, to bring off their parts. Nonetheless, his quartets  are not in the concertante style, although the inner voices do not get much action. Despite their melodic appeal, it is unlikely that his quartets would be all that successful in concerts and for amateurs the cello part, which more or less requires a player of professional standards and which cannot easily be sightread is an obstacle.

17. Ferdinand Thieriot (1838-1919), five years younger than Brahms, was not only born in Hamburg, but also studied with the same teacher, Eduard Marxein. The two knew each other from their Hamburg days and remained on friendly terms.  After Hamburg, Thieriot finished his studies in Munich with Joseph Rheinberger and then moved to Vienna where his friend Brahms was instrumental in helping him obtain the position of Styrian Music Director in the provincial capital of Graz where he worked between 1870-85. Later, Thieriot held important positions in Leipzig and Hamburg where he remained from 1902 until his death. For the most part, Thieriot, like Brahms, remained true to the classical traditions which preceded him and took Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn and Schumann as his models. Only toward the end of his life did he his work show some of the influence of the "New German Music" of Wagner and Liszt. He is the only composer on this list, who dedicated a work to Haydn long after he was dead. In this case, it was actually a century after, and Thieriot wrote that it was to the memory of Haydn. For his time, Thieriot wrote a great deal of chamber music, including perhaps as many as 15 string quartets. The Op.93 sounds, as one might expect from a work composed in 1910, nothing like Haydn. But it is rather a throw back in that it sounds more like something Schumann might have written. Unfortunately, though reasonably well-written, it is not a very good work because of the ordinariness of the thematic material. Thieriot was capable of writing some very attractive music, but the Op.93 is not one of them.

18. Edmund von Weber (1766-1828) was another pupil of Haydn. His Op.8, a set of three quartets were dedicated to Haydn. Spohr found him a rather poor musician and his works, which are hidden away in a few libraries, rather ordinary. It seems unlikely that any are worth reviving.

19. Lastly, we have Johan Wikmanson (1753-1800) the Swedish composer whose three Op.1 quartets were postumously dedicated to Haydn. .Haydn was said to have been pleased with the dedication and perhaps because these are works of quality. Edition Silvertrust publilshes all three quartets. All three quartets are well written and enjoyable to play, Op.1 No.1 (click the link to hear soundbites)  is the equal of any of Haydn's Op.64 quartets and in some ways, in advance of them, particularly in its excellent use of the viola and cello. The most striking movement is the marvelous Adagio, a powerful funeral march--which was performed at Wikmanson's own funeral. It is reminiscent of the slow movement to Haydn's Op.20 No.2, one of the finest Haydn ever wrote. Op.1 No.2, opens with an interesting a Haydnesque Allegro di molto. The theme and variations of the second movement are as good as any that Haydn ever penned. The Finale is a thrilling Prestissimo. Op.1 No.3 is perhaps the most Haydnesque of the three works. Certainly the charming opening movement, Allegro, brings Haydn to mind. There is a very typical Haydn-like minuet and the exciting finale, Scherzando poco presto, also sounds like it came from the pen of the master.