Quartet No. 1, Op. 7

Béla Bartók: Quartet No. 1, Op. 7 Brandon Garbot, violin Stephen Kim, violin Zsche Chuang Rimbo Wong, viola Audrey Anne, cello 0:00 Lento— 8:56 Allegretto— 19:18 Allegro vivace Performed on Friday, May 15, 2015 Field Concert Hall, Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia Thanks to his six beloved contributions to the string quartet literature, Hungarian composer Béla Bartók is widely acknowledged as one of the great masters of the form. Bartók began his career around the turn of the 20th century, when the string quartet was not as popular as in previous generations and string quartet programs were still dominated by the titanic works of masters from a hundred years before—Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven—interspersed with the occasional Romantic quartet by Brahms or Mendelssohn. Bartók’s choice to devote his energy to the string quartet played a key role in the resurgence of the form’s popularity in the 20th century. Bartók was clearly aware of the legacy inherent in the genre when he penned his first quartet, Op. 7. From the outset, he quotes from Beethoven’s fourteenth string quartet, Op. 131. Bartók also applies heavy doses of contrapuntal writing, especially in the first movement (Lento), reminiscent of Beethoven’s late-period fascination with counterpoint and fugues. The tension and drama that open Bartók’s first quartet eventually give way to a lighter Allegretto that forms the bulk of the second movement. This accelerates towards the quartet’s finale (Allegro vivace), which features jagged lines and counterpoint mixed with references to Hungarian folk music, a staple of Bartók’s style.