Haydn

and the String Quartet

Dr. Lara Housez
School of the Arts
McMaster University

Content
Who was Joseph Haydn?
What is a string quartet?
A closer look at Haydns String Quartet in C
Major, Op. 76, No. 3, 2nd mvt.
What is theme and variations form?

Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)

Austrian composer
One of the most
proliOic and
prominent
composers of the
Classical Era
Father of the
symphony (106)
Father of the string
quartet (>70)

 For almost 3 decades,

Haydn worked as a
court musician
directing music for
Prince Nicolas
Esterhzy (L) at his
remote estate in rural
Hungary

Esterhza Palace

 Haydns responsibilities at Esterhza

included:
Writing new music, such as string quartets,
sonatas, and operas
Conducting the princes orchestra
Mounting operatic productions

Haydn on his time in Esterhza:

My Prince was satisOied with all of my
works and I received applause. As the
director of an orchestra, I could make
experiments, observe what elicited or
weakened an impression, and thus correct,
add, delete, take risks. I was cut off from the
world, no one in my vicinity could cause me
to doubt myself or pester me, and so I had to
become original.

 When the prince died in 1790, Haydn made

2 long trips to England where he composed
symphonies, songs, and a number of works
for piano
Haydn went to Vienna for good in 1795,
where he wrote oratorios, Masses, and
string quartets

String Quartet
= a musical ensemble of 4 string players, 2
violinists, 1 violist, and 1 cellist generic designation
= a piece written to be performed by such a
group
- Haydn not the Oirst (Purcell and Allegri in 17th
century)
- Haydn wrote more than anyone else and
helped establish the genre
- Demanding genre
- Intimate

Typical Formal Structure of a

String Quartet
Consists of 4 contrasting m
ovements
with each character of personality
1st: fast tempo, often in sonata form
(Mozart, Sym. no. 40)
2nd: slow, contrasting key, either variation
form or ABA different key ABA is Ternary, AB is Binary
3rd: Minuet, lively, dance form, triple
meter (Haydn, Sym. no. 102)
4th: Finale, very fast, light mood, sonata
form or rondo (ABACA) (Haydn, Sym. no.
faster than the first movement Rondo = ABACA the A may be slightly
102) even
different(variation) not exactly the same ABA''CA''

Typical Timbre of a String Quartet

Blended and usually homogeneous in timbre
because the instruments are all variants of the
same instrument
The registers of the instruments range from
high to low. They correspond to the 4 standard
ranges of the singing voice:
Violin 1 (soprano): sweet, piercing
Violin 2 (alto)
Viola (tenor): mellow, rounded
Cello (bass): resonant, rich

Seating Arrangement
Viola
Violin 2
Violin 1

Cello

String Quartet in C Major, Op. 76,

No. 3, 2nd movement (1797)
This movement demonstrates all 3
fundamental processes of composition:
Repetition
Variation
Contrast

The melody comes from a birthday hymn

(Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser/God Save
Franz, the Emperor) that Haydn wrote for
Franz Joseph I
The tune later became the national anthem of the
Austro-Hungarian Empire and today remains
Germanys national anthem

Theme from Haydn, String Quartet in C Major,

Op. 76, No. 3, 2nd movement

Periodic Phrase Structure

The melody of the theme is made up of 5
phrases, each marked at the end by a
cadence:
The Oirst 2 phrases are the same (AA)
The third is new and not repeated (B)
The last 2 phrases are the same (CC)
Overall form of the theme: AABCC

 Phrases A and B are antecedent phrases; in

other words, they dont sound complete at the
end (like a comma in a sentence)
Phrase C, however, is a consequent phrase, as
it does convey a sense of conclusion (like a
period at the end of a sentence)
Cadences determine the feeling of conclusion
Phrases A and B end with half cadences
(harmonies end on the dominant)
Phrase C ends with a full cadence (harmonies end
on the tonic)

 This kind of phrase structure, with

antecedent and consequent units that
together make a larger whole, is called
periodic phrase structure
This type of phrase structure is particularly
associated with music of the Classical Era

Form
The movement consists of a theme and a
set of 4 variations, a form that Haydn
favoured for the slow movements of his
string quartets
Problem: the tune is associated with the
unchanging Emperor; how can you vary it?
Solution: the melody remains consistent but is
surrounded by contrasting musical lines

 Which instruments play Texture

the theme?
Theme: Violin 1 (Vln. 1)
Variation 1: Vln. 2
Var. 2: Cello
Var. 3: Viola
Var. 4: Vln. 1

homophonic/homorhythmic, hymn-like, 4
parts
thin-2 violin parts, elaborate,
accompaniment,homophonic
polyphonic, working together, thicker,
especially in contrast
polyphonic, thicker

homophonic, hymn-like, polyphonic

How does Haydn create variety with each

variation? (see complete score posted
separately; play a second time with chart)

Theme and Variations Form

Popularity

Widely popular type of form throughout the

Classical Era and into the 19th century

Keep it simple
Theme stated and then altered by embellishing or
simplifying the melody, changing the harmony,
varying the rhythm or meter, texture, dynamics, or
instrumentation, etc.

Composers often drew on well-known themes:

Mozart, Twinkle, twinkle
Beethoven, God Save the King (from Lecture 3)
Rachmaninoff, Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini

For Friday
Read: pp. 187-196
Listen: CD 2, tracks 10 and 11 (Haydn,
Symphony No. 102 in B-Olat Major, 3rd and
4th mvts.)