String Quartet No. 3 (Beethoven)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ludwig van Beethoven's String Quartet No. 3 in D major was published in 1801 as opus 18, no. 3, and was written between 1798 and 1800. Although it is numbered third, it was the first quartet Beethoven composed. It consists of four movements:

Approximate duration (minutes)
1. Allegro 7 - 7½ (occasionally shorter)
2. Andante con moto 8 - 8½
3. Allegro 3
4. Presto 4½ - 6

According to Steinberg, this is the gentlest, most consistently lyrical work [within opus 18] (Steinberg, p. 159), except for the fourth movement, in which Beethoven first explores the idea of shifting the center of gravity toward the end of a multimovement work. (Steinberg, p. 163).

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  • Robert Winter, Robert Martin eds. (1994). The Beethoven Quartet Companion. University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-08211-7. ; especially the essay by Michael Steinberg (pp. 159-163)

[edit] External links