Credited with practically inventing the four-movement structure of the string quartet, Joseph Haydn (1732–1809), in the course of a 50-year period, composed some 80 string quartets, whose range and variety of structural invention rank second only to those of Beethoven.
According to Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Haydn's quartets "are characterized by lucidity, perfect finish, studied moderation, avoidance of meaningless phrases, firmness of design, and richness of development." And in the words of noted musicographer Otto Jahn, "The quartet was Haydn's natural mode of expressing his feelings." Even Mozart declared that he first learned the true way to compose quartets from Haydn.
This fine anthology comprises the six works of the master's Op. 17, all composed in 1771, listed in Anthony van Hoboken's definitive catalog of Haydn's works as gruppe III, nr. 25–30: String Quartet in E Major, Op. 17, No. 1; String Quartet in F Major, Op. 17, No. 2; String Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 17, No. 3; String Quartet in C Minor, Op. 17, No. 4; String Quartet in G Major, Op. 17, No. 5; and String Quartet in D Major, Op. 17, No. 6.
Musicians and all music lovers will delight in the addition to their score libraries of this convenient, inexpensive compilation of essential works of the chamber music literature.
