Joachim to the Busch String Quartet

Loading...

From the course by Curtis Institute of Music

The World of the String Quartet

280 оценки

Curtis Institute of Music

The World of the String Quartet

280 оценки

Arnold Steinhardt, first violin of the internationally acclaimed Guarneri String Quartet, invites music listeners to the world of the string quartet repertoire and ensemble. Journey with him and interpretive analysis instructor Mia Chung through the history and features of quartet music, colored by stories of legendary quartets and insights from the stage. This season's Curtis courses are sponsored by Linda Richardson in loving memory of her husband, Dr. Paul Richardson.

From the lesson

The Humanists: Schubert, Mendelssohn, Schumann, and Brahms

Personal expression infused Romantic Era compositions, including the string quartets of Schubert (D. 810, "Death and the Maiden"), Mendelssohn (Op. 13 and Op. 80), Schumann (Op. 41, No. 3), and Brahms (Op. 51, No. 1). Yet in the generation after Beethoven's towering genius, composers wrote fewer quartets. Why? And where did the followers of Beethoven take the quartet next?

Joachim to the Busch String Quartet3:34

Meet the Instructors

Arnold Steinhardt
Performance Faculty
Dr. Mia Chung
Instructor of Interpretive Analysis
Musical Studies

The Joachim String Quartet was arguably the most distinguished

and well-known performing group since the Schuppanzigh Quartet's reign

during the time of Beethoven. Joseph Joachim, born in 1831,

died in 1907, was one of the most admired

and influential violinists and musicians of his time.

He was a composer, conductor, teacher,

soloist and friend and advisor to Johannes Brahms,

as well as the first violinist of a quartet

that was active for almost 40 years.

The Joachim Quartet toured extensively

and their repertoire was devoted in large part to works

of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Schumann,

and of course Brahms. A large lithograph of the Joachim Quartet with

Beethoven's opus 59 #3 String Quartet

on their music stands has hung for decades in one at the

Curtis Institute of Music's

teaching rooms. It was there when I struggled with my very first

string quartet assignments

as a student at Curtis and it is still there today.

The recording machine was invented in 1877,

and there are thankfully a few recordings

of Joachim as soloist, but it is

tantalizing to think that the Joachim String Quartet

could have recorded something for posterity.

They could have, but they did not,

and sadly, we are only left with that lithograph as a poor

visual substitute. The Busch String Quartet

almost literally picked up where the Joachim left off with

a gap of only a few years.

Adolph Busch, composer, conductor,

and one of the greatest German violinists of the first half of the 20th century,

founded the Vienna Konzertverein Quartet in 1912

and then the Busch String Quartet in 1919,

a group that performed worldwide with him

as first violinist for the next three decades. Busch not only formed

these quartets but also was

almost entirely responsible for their musical vision.

The Busch Quartet was admired for its interpretations of

Schubert, Brahms, but especially Beethoven.

Unlike the Joachim Quartet, the Busch Quartet recorded extensively.

In listening to their recordings of late Beethoven Quartets,

a modern listener would not be particularly impressed

by their technical polish.

What captivates is their choice of tempos,

the avoidance of lush sound for its own sake,

and the utter directness and musical depth of their interpretation.

The Busch Quartet was at that time the most typical

model of a string quartet with one leader, almost always the first violin,

whose name adorned the quartet, such as the Schuppanzigh,

The Joachim, the Capet, and the Rose string quartets.

These were the quartets that dominated the string quartet

field of that time and created the vision

that inspired quartets to follow. We string quartet players of this

era are forever grateful for the legacy

that they handed on to us.

Ознакомьтесь с нашим каталогом

Присоединяйтесь бесплатно и получайте персонализированные рекомендации, обновления и предложения.

Coursera делает лучшее в мире образование доступным каждому, предлагая онлайн-курсы от ведущих университетов и организаций.

© Coursera Inc., 2018 Все права защищены.

Загрузить из App Store

Загрузить в Google Play