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Which is your favourite Quartet?

  • Op. 33, No. 1; Quartet No. 31 in B minor

    Votes: 8 50.0%
  • Op. 33, No. 2; Quartet No. 30 in E flat major, "The Joke"

    Votes: 2 12.5%
  • Op. 33, No. 3; Quartet No. 32 in C major, "The Bird"

    Votes: 3 18.8%
  • Op. 33, No. 4; Quartet No. 34 in B flat major

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Op. 33, No. 5; Quartet No. 29 in G major, "How do you do?"

    Votes: 3 18.8%
  • Op. 33, No. 6; Quartet No. 33 in D major

    Votes: 0 0.0%

Haydn String Quartets: Opus 33

5K views 15 replies 8 participants last post by  DebussyDoesDallas 
#1 ·
The Op. 33 represent the 'new and special way' in quartet writing that Haydn famously advertised to his publishers. Written 9 years after the op. 20, these quartets differ in a significant number of ways. Baroque counterpoint is almost entirely absent, replaced by what Rosen calls 'Classical counterpoint', which is a clever working of motivic material in the melodies and accompaniments so that the two intermingle and swap. This involves a different kind of melody, which in these are usually made up of very short motifs. On the larger scale, whereas the op. 20 were (as a general characterisation) dark and expansive, these may be said to be light-hearted yet concentrated, generally shorter than their predecessors.

I'm planning on skipping straight to the op. 50, and doing a thread at the end to cover the op. 42 and Seven Last Words along with the very late ones.

As always, comment on the works, recordings etc.

Previous: Opus 1, Opus 2, Opus 3, Opus 9, Opus 17, Opus 20

Next: Opus 50
 
#2 ·
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#6 ·
I haven't joined in the polls about Haydn quartets launched by Ramako, but I thank him. There are many "string quartets" out there (including luminaries such as Glass, Ferneyhough et al ...) but as a string player I have to say there are few things that bring greater joy than a Haydn quartet. I place on an equal footing Mozart, Beethoven and Bartok. I could add Borodin, Debussy and continue the list, but at a pinch it is Joseph and Ludwig. At a further, final pinch, it has to be Joseph. No, Ludwig. OK, Joe and Louis. Final word.
 
#15 ·
This shows you how good Haydn gets when he publishes. No quartet opus is better - the b minor, the Joke, the Bird, all really good. I voted for the Joke because all of its movements are of high standards, but I could have voted for any one of those three.
 
#16 ·
Any opinions on the Quatuor Mosaics Opus 33? I have and love their Opus 77 and Opus 20. I have a lot of other versions, but am interested in checking out Mosaiques, but it's so expensive.

Recently I got the Parkanyi disc with 1, 6, and 4 from opus 33 and 42. Really great sound and performance. Berkshire Record Outlet has a number of excellent Haydn sets at discount prices, including the aforementioned.

I voted b minor.
 
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