PIANO QUARTETS OF L. BEETHOVEN: MOZART’S PROTOTYPES AND AUTHOR’S INITIO

Background. The article provides an analysis of L. Beethoven’s piano quartets through the prism of the ensemble writing and composition experience by W. A. Mozart. The disclosure of the successive ties between the two great Viennese classics in the field of chamber instrumental music contributes to the scientific understanding of the history of this genre, which is not sufficiently covered in musicology. The analysis revealed that the four piano quartets of L. Beethoven are focused on Mozart’s prototypes, or rather, on sonatas for violin and piano. It was found that the formative principles of Beethoven’s piano quartets grow from the above-mentioned compositions by W. A. Mozart, but the content and the ensemble-dramatic solution reflect the independence and originality of the young composer’s thinking, revealing the sprouts of a future mature style. The purpose of this article is to disclose the ways of rethinking the prototypes of Mozart in the piano quartets of L. Beethoven. The piano quartets of the latter serve as the musical material of the article: No. 1 Es-dur, No. 2 D-dur, No. 3 C-dur WoO 36, and No. 4 Es-dur op. 16. Results. L. Beethoven changes the algorithm of ensemble events contained in Mozart’s opuses, where the theme is presented in turn by piano, violin, followed by the conversation of the two. The composer immediately includes all members of the quartet in the presentation of the leading material, which specifies this genre, revealing its “intermediateness” between the intimacy of the trio and the “representativeness” of the concerto. Since the genetic origins of the genre of the piano quartet are the trio sonata, the string quartet and the clavier concerto with the accompaniment of a string ensemble, these genres influenced the type of Beethoven’s piano quartets. Thus, Beethoven’s Bonn quartets resemble in their writing a string quartet; and the piano quartet Es-dur op. 16 resembles a clavier concerto with orchestra. These compositions are related to the first of the above mentioned prototypes by the consistent application of the trio principle, which is expressed in various combinations of ensemble voices. In the timbre refraction, the trio-principle underlies the pairing of stringed instruments, where the bowed instruments form a strictly homophonic vertical with the traditional functional relationship according to the “upper voice ‒ bass ‒ middle” model. Another dimension of the trio principle arises when one of the string parts of the piano is displaced, as a result of which a multi-timbre sound field is formed. There is an obvious desire of the composer for the equality of four voices in the piano quartet. At the same time, the timbre uniqueness of the piano and the virtuosity of its part make it possible to recognize in it the leader of the ensemble union. Conclusion. The leading role of the piano in L. Beethoven’s piano quartets brings this genre closer to a piano concerto. At the same time, the piano has a variety of role functions: it can act as an equal partner, being one of the voices of the quartet score; as a concert instrument demonstrating its virtuoso capabilities; as a leader of an ensemble, a kind of conductor, giving impetus to performance, initiative in ensemble play. Similar functions can be observed in W. A. Mozart’s sonatas for violin and piano, which L. Beethoven was guided by.

Under the sign of playing: C. M. Weber’s Piano Quartet

Background. A play principle is one of the essential properties of the artistic worldview and creative thinking of C. M. Weber. Declaring itself in works of different genres, it takes on many different shades, speaking in the form of comic, ironic, characteristic and carnival. In the instrumental opuses by the composer, the play aspect appears in complex of texture, articulation, intonation and thematic, dynamic and formative techniques that lead to immediate visual and theatrical associations. Expression of play principles in this genre sphere can be considered, on the one hand, as various types of ensemble dialogue, and on the other hand, as virtuosity, producing aesthetic pleasure and sincere joy. The Piano Quartet by the composer, a typical example of the instrumental and play beginnings in the work by C. M. Weber, is a part of repertoires of many ensembles, but it has not yet become an object of serious scientific interest. The question of the historical and stylistic affiliation of C. M. Weber is debatable, as evidenced by significant differences in the views of scientists on this issue. Some of them, as La Mara (1886), R. Teryokhin (1983), R. Mizitova (1999), see him as the custodian of the Viennese classical tradition, focusing on “mozartianism” of C. M. Weber, others, as J. Warrack (1976) and B. Smallman (1994), considered him as one of the pioneers of romanticism. The former notes the improvisational nature of the emergence of the quartet cycle, the latter ‒ the elegance of writing and the unusual form of the last part, which served as a model for creating the finale of instrumental opuses for subsequent romantic composers. The pianistic texture by C. M. Weber as reflection of the virtuosoromantic direction is described in the works of N. Kashkadamova (2006) and O. Skorbyaschenskaya (1993). The aforementioned works also note the unusual form-making of the composer and the fantasy nature of his Minuets-Scherzo, that anticipate the experiments of F. Mendelssohn and other romantic composers. I. Karachevtseva (2015: 24) takes a special position toward the work by C. M. Weber acknowledging it as “the quintessence of a new artistic and stylistic quality that defines the boundary between two historical eras”. Objectives. The purpose of this article is to identify the genre, dramatic and the shaping characteristics of the Piano Quartet by C. M. Weber as a manifestation of play logic. Results. The play principle is manifested at all levels of the text of Weber’s work: genre, compositional, dramatic, thematic. C. M. Weber does not resort to the typical of classical piano ensembles three-part cycle, but to the four-part, placing Minuet between Adagio and the Finale. In our opinion, the inclusion of the Minuet in the sonata cycle is due to the theatrical and playful mindset of C. M. Weber. This assumption is corroborated by the nature of the dramatic logic of the Piano Quartet cycle, where in each part the listener (including the performer) something unusual, captivating and witty lies in wait. Playful interest in the movement’s intrigue extends even to Adagio, which by its nature is less likely to surprise. The entire first section of this part is built of short statements, changes in the types of movement, rhythmic pulsation, contradicting dynamic shades, and ultimately figurative details, as a result of which instead of a holistic meditative theme, a dynamic, instrumental “mise-en-scene” arises. Equally fractional is the main part of the sonata Allegro, where the delicate phrase of the solo piano is suddenly interrupted by the irritated intonation of the sf and ff trills, and the exhorting statement of the string trio makes the piano to have second thoughts. We observe the play logic of the event canvas as the piano and string trio are endowed with their own thematicism, “personified”. The Minuet is unexpected in a minor modus (g-moll) in the context of a major composition (B-dur), the rapid change of textural-thematic units, and the simplicity of the trio theme ‒ in the spirit of rural German dances, contrasting the blasting extreme parts. The final rondo (Presto) plunges into a whirlpool of refrains and episodes, creating the impression of carnival fuss and kindling the listener’s “interest in continuation”, and the multipart composition turns into a comparison of musical “scenes”, anticipating the principles of constructing miniature cycles of R. Schumann. Conclusions. The thematic plethora of the Piano Quartet by C. M. Weber, a totally dynamic character, the violation of the classical linearity and predictability of the plot provide the author with a gargantuan opportunity of ensemble dispositions. The composer follows to the parity of communicants achieved by W. A. Mozart in his piano quartets, grouping them into various combinations. Among them, there are a dialogue of the piano and string trio, a melodic communication of the strings against the background of the figured movement of the piano, the solo of the string instrument against the background of keyboard chords, as well as the pianos’ solo in the context of dialogue at the composition level. Thus, assigning primary importance to the play principle, C. M. Weber signifies a universal factor in creating stylistic harmony, which covers figurativelythematic, compositional, ensemble spheres. In structuring of the cycle and its individual parts, in the course of the music-event process, in the art of ensemble writing, the composer showed his mastery creating the “second reality” that merges with play in its intrinsic value.

Biographical Myth and the Publication of Mozart's Piano Quartets

The story that Mozart was commissioned to write three piano quartets for publication in Franz Anton Hoffmeister's subscription series has proved to be remarkably resilient in the Mozart literature. According to the account that first appeared in Georg Nikolaus von Nissen's biography (1828), Hoffmeister gave Mozart an advance payment for the works, but decided to withdraw after the first quartet, K.478, was poorly received. The article exposes a series of flaws in this narrative by locating Hoffmeister's edition of K.478 in a wider contextual and bibliographical framework than has been hitherto attempted. A revised chain of events, based on a new understanding of Hoffmeister's business, suggests a more complex narrative for Mozart's dealings with the publisher. It also prompts us to reconsider the circumstances surrounding Mozart's composition of his two completed piano quartets and the reception of his chamber music in Vienna before 1791.