S.Q. Daily #10: Ravel String Quartet

S.Q. Daily: A Composer's Listening Journal

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/izzyplante/2151275207/

(Photo by izzyplante, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License.)

Day #10: Maurice Ravel
String Quartet, Op. 10

I'm out of town attending a friend's wedding, but thanks to the wonders of Blogger, you can enjoy this future-dated "Friday" post on schedule.

Day #10 of S.Q. Daily brings, if you've been counting, my ninth quartet review. (I didn't review one my first day.) My favorites so far have to be the Shostakovich #7, Bartók #4, and Debussy, with the Britten #2 close behind.

Ravel's String Quartet in F Major definitely ranks up there with the best of them. If you've got 30 minutes, give it a listen (Hagen Quartet on YouTube).

Ravel (Wiki) completed the work in 1903, at age 28. This work is so amazing it even has its own Wiki page. (For that matter, so does Debussy's.)

Ravel dedicated the work to his longtime teacher and friend Gabriel Fauré, whose own quartet we heard on Wednesday. (If you're into historical gossip, read up on the "Ravel Affair".)

Ravel likely modeled the work on Debussy's of a decade earlier, which makes perfect sense when you experience them in close proximity. Ravel's work also features prominent open fifths in the cello (check out Movement III), a focus on sighing melodies, and frequent "watery" gestures that form a nice aural corollary to watercolors.

To my ear, however, Ravel is a little more rhythmically active and punchy, particularly in the final movement's extended sections of 5/8 meter. He seems to be foreshadowing the disjunct, rustic energy found in early Stravinsky and virtually all Bartók. (I know, I know, they're only 7 and 6 years younger than Ravel, respectively, and I'm not claiming that he in particular influenced them.)

Like Fauré and Debussy before him, Ravel only wrote one quartet, and like Debussy (and somewhat less, Fauré), it is a staple in the quartet repertoire. One almost wishes Ravel had penned another later in life, but this gem certainly does the job.

Each movement is worth listening to, but I'll go ahead and recommend Movement II if you're in a hurry. It's uptempo and flashy, and features the same level of idiomatic writing and attention to color as the rest of the composition.

- - -

Another reminder, the combined score to Debussy and Ravel's quartets can be had for $7.50 + S&H on Amazon.

The audio CD is $5.75 (Emerson Quartet) or $4.50 (Kodaly Quartet), or $8 for the Kodaly MP3 album download.

S.Q. Daily #9: Debussy String Quartet

S.Q. Daily: A Composer's Listening Journal

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/izzyplante/2151275207/

(Photo by izzyplante, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License.)

Day #9: Claude Debussy
String Quartet, Op. 10

Back to composers without diacritical marks in their names.

Today we'll take a look at a giant in this (and just about every) genre: Claude Debussy. His Wiki article is a good place to start for a summary of his works and his rather turbulent life.

Debussy is a monumental figure in music history. His contributions to color/timbre and harmony were groundbreaking and remain hugely influential to this day.

Listening to his quartet today, I can't help but regret my recent comment dismissing the majority of melodies as interchangeable and of less importance than other factors. Debussy's melodic material here, as in his Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faun (Youtube), is at once simple and captivating, almost like folk music from an unknown corner of the world. Not that whole tone or pentatonic scales are anything new to contemporary ears, but the effect remains just the same.

Despite the frequent return of single melodic lines alongside a single accompaniment or background idea, every moment of this work is engaging. The fluid "Impressionistic" (not Debussy's description) gestures certainly help this. Rarely has music with so many notes on the page sounded so effortless and un-fussy. (Compare to Carter, Boulez, etc.)

Debussy also makes ample use of the extreme registers of the individual instruments, particularly at the openings of movements and in exposed solo sections.

While every page provides something to admire, I'll single out the third movement as my strongest recommendation. Its crystal clear motives (at least one of which is derived from the first movement) are couched in a wide variety of supporting textures, from sustained chords to more active lines. At this very slow tempo, though, Debussy can not fall back on the watery "magic tricks" of 32nd notes in more moderate tempi. These undulating figures are of course integral to the charm of some of his music, but it's nice to see this contrasting setting that also gets the job done.

The return to A at Rehearsal #14 is especially gorgeous, with a soaring violin line and full double stops.

And just when I'm ready to end my post, I realize that I've got to put in a word for Movement II as well. The 16th note background material makes a perfect "sonic floor" for the material it supports, even in the absence of a fuller symphonic setting. Plus the rhythmic activity and pizzicato sections are flat out fun to listen to.

So go do that. Another one-hit-wonder of the genre, Debussy's String Quartet is definitely one you should know.

P.S. - You can get the score ($7.50) and CD ($6) of this work paired with tomorrow's entry, Ravel, who rounds out French week here on S.Q. Daily.

S.Q. Daily #8: Fauré String Quartet

S.Q. Daily: A Composer's Listening Journal

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/izzyplante/2151275207/

(Photo by izzyplante, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License.)

Day #8: Fauré
String Quartet, Op. 121

It is Wednesday, and now Fauré gets his due. Certainly a more well-known composer than d'Indy, let's see if there's merit to that reputation. (Links to the audio and score are below.)

Gabriel Fauré's String Quartet is the banana soufflé at the Banquet of String Quartets. Light, airy, and delicate, a fine creation, and yet somehow not a main course.

The work is generally well constructed, with good use and variation of the motives. With the slight exception of the final movement, the piece does not seem to present any great challenges to the ensemble on its surface. Offbeat accompaniment patterns and the infamous "dotted eighth-sixteenth" pattern are about as tough as it gets. That a quartet could perform this work while smiling may well add to its dainty character. (That's certainly not true of the Bartók!)

I'm coming around to the opinion that many melodies are as good as any other, and that real musical interest comes from accompaniments, texture, motivic development, and form. In the second movement (m.16, reh. #11), my attention immediately fell to the sly background pattern in the violins. Alternating eighth-notes in 3rds and 2nds provide a watery backdrop for one of many fine lyrical melodies before giving way to offbeat pizzicato chords. I do wish each of these had been prolonged, though.

Despite the late date of this composition (1924), Fauré remains true to many genre traditions: sonata forms, attention to counterpoint, and a subdominant-keyed second movement. The piece is a warm invitation to the listener to seek out the rest of his works.

You'll find another helpful account of his quartet here.
(Click "Read more about this recording" and scroll down.)

- - -

Fauré, like Debussy and Ravel after him (who we'll explore tomorrow and Friday!), wrote only this one string quartet. Sadly, no Public Domain score is available (it is PD if you're in Canada or the EU!), as he waited until 1924 - his 79th and final year of life - to complete the work.

Buy the full score ($16).

Listen to the first movement (YouTube).

On CD, pair him with Ravel ($3.67 new!), or with Debussy and Stravinsky ($10/$8 used).

(By the way, always check Amazon's private sellers. That's where you find ridiculous deals like the Fauré/Ravel I mentioned.)

Tomorrow on S.Q. Daily: Debussy.

S.Q. Daily #7: d'Indy No. 2

S.Q. Daily: A Composer's Listening Journal

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/izzyplante/2151275207/

(Photo by izzyplante, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License.)

Day #7: Vincent d'Indy
String Quartet No. 2, Op. 45

Oops. I brought the wrong score with me, so we're switching up the order a bit. Instead of Fauré, we'll tackle d'Indy's second.

* Full score and parts from IMSLP (free, Public Domain)

* Kodaly Quartet plays it on the Marco Polo label (Naxos).
(Amazon excerpts by Kodaly: tracks 1-4)

* Quatuor Mosaïques plays it on "gut string" period instruments
(Amazon excerpts by Mosaïque : disc 3, tracks 5-8)

* Other Amazon previews are here and here (no Youtube, sorry!)


Paul Marie Théodore Vincent d'Indy (1851-1931) - now there's a name! His second of three quartets, composed in 1897, is miles apart from Saint-Saëns' 1899 quartet in terms of aesthetic. While both draw upon similar French late-Romantic harmony, the d'Indy sounds much more conservative - even Classical (with a big "C").

The fourth and final movement is a nice place to start when examining this quartet. It is a representation of the best aspects from the other three movements put together. Tempi and moods change somewhat frequently, keeping the listener on her/his toes.

The opening melodic motive ("MI-FA-LA-SOL," for you Ear Training students out there) absolutely pervades the entire work - so much so that it can become tiresome in the absence of interesting context.

The first movement uses voicings that are quite predictable and simple, without the air of brevity and inevitability commonly seen in Mozart. The music is rather dry, with the "louds" not too loud, the "fasts" not too fast, and the lushness not all that lush. If it weren't for the specific harmonies chosen, one could mistakely guess that this work belongs to the late Classical period, and not the late Romantic. Lyrical lines crop up now and again, but they seem naked without the orchestrational interest to back them up.

Movement II provides a little more textural variety and complexity. The final seven measures are extremely promising; unfortunately, they are the culmination of an idea, and not the gensis of one. The promise is over in a matter of seconds.

Motivic connections are still going strong throughout Movement III. D'Indy is still content, however, to repeat sub-phrases literally three or four times in solo voices, producing sudden contrasts without the payoff of surprise. We catch another glimpse of excitement in the triplet accompaniment at Rehearsal #14, but this too departs in a fleeting Augenblick.

Similar to a counterpoint exercise from school, Vincent d'Indy's String Quartet No. 2 looks correct and elegant on paper, but it holds little interest for the ear. Of course, multiple hearings would likely be favorable to the composition (or good for its listener, at least).

Tomorrow on S.Q. Daily, Fauré.

S.Q. Daily #6: Saint-Saëns No. 1

S.Q. Daily: A Composer's Listening Journal

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/izzyplante/2151275207/

(Photo by izzyplante, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License.)

Day #6: Camille Saint-Saëns
String Quartet No. 1, Op. 112

Welcome back to S.Q. Daily. We'll be exploring French quartets all this week, in chronological order by composer's birth:

Saint-Saëns
Fauré
d'Indy
Debussy
Ravel

First, the Saint-Saëns. Visit Naxos for audio if you're a subscriber, or you can listen to four 30-second previews on Amazon.

This quartet really surprised me with its ambitious musical ideas, motivic unity, and variety. I think I had placed Saint-Saëns earlier in history than he was, and that, in general, I frequently underestimate a lot of music written before, say, Firebird (1910, 1919 Suite).

The entire work is around 30 minutes in length. It's a short and enjoyable 30 minutes, but if you only have time for one movement, listen to the second (5:34). (The Equinox String Quartet has a great 90-second excerpt.) At quarter note = 184, this liveley section is shot through with catchy syncopated melodic figures just half a beat ahead of the pizzicato accompaniment. The rhythmic coordination and ensemble awareness required to perform this piece are quite impressive.

The second movement's off-beat feel is directly anticipated by a motive from the first movement, highlighting the tight motivic unity running throughout the composition as a whole. Despite the frequent return of material, though, Saint-Saëns always keeps things fresh, varying the tempi, textures, ranges, and harmonies with skill.

Although every member of the quartet must hold her/his own and count like mad for a convincing execution of this piece, the first violin is often the center of attention. With ample melodic material, fast runs quite high in the range, and tricky rapid bowing, the part comes only slightly short of virtuoso soloist playing without abandoning the concept of the quartet as an equanimous ensemble.

For a parting factoid: Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) wrote this first of two quartets in 1899, at age 64. His second was in 1918, only a few years before his death in 1921.

Tune in tomorrow for Vincent d'Indy's Quartet No. 2!