String Quartets, Op. 20 (Haydn)

The six string quartets opus 20 by Joseph Haydn are among the works that earned Haydn the sobriquet "the father of the string quartet". The quartets are considered a milestone in the history of composition; in them, Haydn develops compositional techniques that were to define the medium for the next 200 years.

The quartets were composed in 1772 at a time of tensions in Haydn's life, and also when Haydn was influenced by new philosophical and political ideas sweeping Europe. Some analysts see the impact of these emotions and ideas on the quartets.

The set of quartets includes the following (in order of Haydn's own catalog [Entwurf-Katalog]):

Number 5, in F minor

Number 6, in A Major

Number 2, in C major

Number 3, in G minor

Number 4, in D major

Number 1, in E-flat major

Haydn was 40 years old when he composed the opus 20 quartets, and was already well-established as one of the leading composers of Europe. He was Kapellmeister to the Prince Nikolaus Esterházy, a great lover of music. Haydn presided over the busy musical life of the court, producing operas, oratorios, and symphonic and chamber concerts, and writing a steady stream of new music for the prince's amusement.

Nikolaus had eight years prior to this date built the Eszterháza palace southeast of Vienna (in Hungary), where the court resided for most of the year. While the palace itself was one of the most splendid in Austria, and was dubbed the "Hungarian Versailles", it was built over a large swamp; it was humid throughout the year, with a "vexatious, penetrating north wind" from which Haydn and the other musicians in the court suffered. Moreover, it was far from Vienna, and the musicians (Haydn, as Kapellmeister, excepted) had to leave their wives and families behind for many months. Consequently, there was much discontent among the musicians, and Haydn, like the others, suffered from bouts of depression and illness.

This atmosphere found its expression in the opus 20 quartets. "The designation affettuoso found twice in the directions for the tempo of slow movements can be applied to the whole opus," writes Geiringer. Haydn chooses minor keys for two of the quartets, unusual in a time where the minor was rarely used for this ensemble. In particular, the fifth quartet is in the unusual key of F minor, "a key that predisposes even Haydn to sombre thoughts," writes Cobbett.

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Wikipedia