String Quartet No. 2 "Compliments Quartet"

The String Quartet No. 2 in G major, op. 18, No. 2, was written by Ludwig van Beethoven between 1798 and 1800 and published in 1801.

It consists of four movements:

1. Allegro
2. Adagio cantabile — Allegro — Tempo I
3. Scherzo: Allegro
4. Allegro molto, quasi presto

Of the opus 18 string quartets, this one is the most grounded in 18^th century musical tradition.^[1] According to Steinberg:

In German-speaking countries, the graceful curve of the first violin's opening phrase has earned the work the nickname of Komplimentier-Quartett, which might be translated as "quartet of bows and curtseys".^[2]

Notes

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. 155-159)

External links

• String Quartet No. 2: Free scores at the International Music Score Library Project.