Sticky Notes: The Classical Music Podcast

Beethoven Op. 18 String Quartets, Part 2

Oct 27, 2022

In this podcast, the speaker explores the final three quartets of Beethoven's Opus 18 set, highlighting their classical influences and Beethoven's departure from tradition. They analyze Beethoven's variation of the rondo theme, discuss the relationship between Beethoven's Opus 18 No. 5 Quartet and Mozart's K-464 Quartet, and compare the musical styles of Beethoven and Mozart. The third movement of the String Quartets is explored, focusing on the Themes and Variations. Lastly, Beethoven's early music is compared to Haydn's, highlighting its wit, energy, and added muscle.

01:06:32

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Quick takeaways

Beethoven's Op. 18 quartets showcase his ability to depict drama and anxiety through the use of C minor as his favorite key.

Despite Beethoven's irascible nature, his Op. 18 quartets exhibit impossibly charming and Mozartian music.

Deep dives

Overview of the Podcast Episode

This episode of Sticky Notes, the Classical Music Podcast, dives into Beethoven's Opus 18 String Quartets. The host begins by expressing gratitude to Patreon sponsors and sharing personal news of becoming the new chief conductor of the Aalborg Symphony in Denmark. The episode then delves into a detailed analysis of Opus 18 No. 4, exploring the use of different musical keys and Beethoven's choice to stay in C minor throughout the entire quartet. The second and third movements of Opus 18 No. 4 are also examined, highlighting their playfulness, quirky details, and contrasting moods. The fourth movement is described as emotionally intense, with a slow introduction and a lively rondo section. The podcast then discusses Beethoven's Opus 18 No. 5, highlighting its similarities and homage to a quartet by Mozart. The theme and variation movement in Opus 18 No. 5 is praised for its creativity and charm. Finally, Opus 18 No. 6 is analyzed, emphasizing its conciseness, classical structure, and the emotional depth of its slow introduction. The episode concludes with praise for Beethoven's unique musical voice, his ability to evoke diverse emotions, and a teaser for future episodes.

Introduction

3min

Beethoven's Opus 18 quartets: Classical influences and departure from tradition

28min

Exploring a Variation of the Rondo Theme

2min

The Relationship Between Beethoven's Opus 18 No. 5 Quartet and Mozart's K-464 Quartet

3min

Comparing the Unique Musical Voices of Beethoven and Mozart

2min

Exploring the Themes and Variations

10min

Comparing Beethoven's Early Music to Haydn's

19min

Note: This episode will be a lot more enjoyable if you listen to Part 1 first!

As we turn towards the final three quartets of the set, we’ll see a lot of the same characteristics of the first 3; a perfect classical era proportionality, strong influences from Haydn and Mozart, and that perfect blend of vividly drawn but just very slightly restrained characters that marks Beethoven’s early period. But we also will see something else. We will see C Minor, Beethoven’s favorite key to depict drama and anxiety, we will see music that is almost impossibly charming and Mozartian coming from a composer as irascible as Beethoven, and then we will arrive at Op. 18 No. 6, perhaps the most emotionally complex and forward looking of the 6 Op. 18 quartets. We’ll take our same birds eye view of each of these quartets, as we did last week, but I will also do two more deep dives. We'll take apart the first movement of Op. 18 No. 4, and the last movement of Op. 18 No. 6, which is the movement that for many is the highlight of these quartets. Along the way, we’ll enjoy all of the quirky details of these three mini masterpieces, and see how Beethoven was starting to break the mold and set out onto his own path, one note at a time.

PS: All recordings used on the show for the last two weeks were done by The Cleveland Quartet - recordings of the complete quartets are available at clevelandquartet.com

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