Beethoven's 7th, 8th, and 9th string quartets were a set of three commissioned by the Russian ambassador to Vienna, Count Razumovsky. As a result, the Opus 59 String Quartets have been collectively known as the "Razumovsky" Quartets.
Composed in 1806, the Opus 59 Quartets are a radical departure from his six Opus 18 String Quartets composed six years earlier. The length, technical difficulty, and emotional content of all three quartets are representative of Beethoven's "Heroic" Period that began with the 3rd Symphony.
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| COUNT ANDREY RAZUMOVSKY IN 1810 |
The quartets were initially met with confusion and bewilderment from listeners because of the structural liberties taken with form, tonality, and emotional content that broke from the established norms of the Classical Style. The quartets were soon recognized by music connoisseurs as significantly profound masterworks.
Beethoven's use of non-traditional modulations to remote key areas and contextual use of form figure prominently in all three quartets, as do references to Russian folk tunes in the first and second quartets of the set.
VIDEO WALKTHROUGHS
VIDEO WALKTHROUGHS
