Beethoven-Zyklus I

Quatuor Ebène

Programme:
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 3 in D major, Op. 18/3, String Quartet No. 11 in F minor, Op. 95 »Quartetto serioso«, String Quartet No. 8 in E minor, Op. 59/2 »Rasumowsky«

Quatuor Ebène kick off their cycle of Beethoven’s string quartets! First up is Quartet No. 3 in D major, which, despite its number, was actually the first of the Opus 18 quartets that Beethoven composed. While the six pieces it contains are still rooted in the 18th century with their echoes of Haydn and Mozart, they reveal Beethoven’s quest for his own unique style. Quartet No. 11 in F minor marks the end of the composer’s »middle period quartets«. Composed in 1810, it is bursting with unbridled passion despite its compactness. It is believed that the catalyst for this piece was the war between France and Austria, which resulted in Napoleon’s troops marching into Vienna in 1809. On a more personal level, Beethoven may also have been processing the rejection of his marriage proposal by Therese Malfatti, which plunged him into a deep crisis in the summer of 1810. The second Rasumowsky Quartet, published in 1806, was initially met with confusion and rejection due to its complexity, as were the other two Op. 59 quartets. Today, however, they are regarded as highlights of Beethoven’s oeuvre — how listening habits change!

presented by dodenhof and swb
in cooperation with the Philharmonische Gesellschaft Bremen