CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME OF THE SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND GIVEN IN 1891 BY HENRY WILLIAMS SAGE MTKir MT 58.D91™" ""'"™'"' '■""''^ The original of tiiis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924022495497 ®Ij* iltuaman'a HCtbrarg CHAMBEE MUSIC MACMILLAN AND CO., Limited LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCUTTA MELBOURNE THE MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK • BOSTON • CHICAGO DALLAS • SAN FRANCISCO THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. TORONTO i^^i^iiil^'i ■t^' ■ Vj. •''iSSF-' ••* - —5 CHAMBER MUSIC A TREATISE FOR STUDENTS BY THOMAS F. DUNHILL MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON & STAINER AND BELL, LIMITED 58 BERNERS STREET, LONDON 1913 COPXRIBBT TO MT DEAR OLD FRIEND JAMES A. FINDLAY IN REMEMBRANCE OP THOSE HAPPY SANGUINE DATS Off EARLY YOUTH WHEN, TOSBTHER, WE LEARNT TO KNOW AND LOVE CHAMBER MUSIC NOTE I AM gratefully indebted to Sir Frederick Bridge and Messrs. Novello & Co. for allowing me to reproduce, as frontispiece to this volume, the interesting manuscript of a Minuet for string- quartet by Thomas Attwood, composed while he was studying with Mozart, and rewritten by the master on the same sheet of paper — suffering a pen-change into " something rich and strange." My best thanks are also due to Messrs. Eudall, Carte & Co. for kindly permitting access to their large stock of music for wind instruments, and for giving me every facility to make use of it in the compilation of the chapter dealing with this branch of the subject. For help in technical, matters and proof- correcting I wish to express my hearty gratitude to my good friends Mr. Cecil Forsyth, Dr. C. H. Lloyd and Mr. Edward Mason, whose sympathetic assistance has been both invaluable and encouraging. THOMAS F. DUNHILL. Windsor, March, 1913. CONTENTS CHAP. • PAOB I. Introductory 1 II. The String Quartet - - - - 11 /. Some general principles, as exemplified in the Quartets of Haydn, Mozart, ami Beethoven. III. The String Quartet - - - - 47 //. Resources and IV. The String Quartet - ... 96 ///. Counsels and Warnings. V. The String Trio, Quintet, Sextet, etc., with Some Remarks upon the Effective Use of- THE Double Bass in Chamber Music - 116 VI. Strings with Pianoforte - - - - 153 /. Duet-sonatas. VII. Strings with Pianoforte ... 186 //. Trios, Qvartets, and Quintets. VIII. Wind Instruments 246 IX. The Larger Combinations - - 286 Retrospections and Prospects of Development. Ebduced Facsimile of the original manuscript of a Minuet for String Quartet by Thomas Attwood, re-written on the same page by Mozart - Frmtispkce CHAPTER L INTRODUCTORY. Chamber Music, if we accept the designation in its widest sense, must rightly include all music especially suitable for performance in a private room, and exclude all music designed for large masses of singers or players, all ecclesiastical, and all dramatic music. Even the most comprehensive generic terms are apt, however, in common and constant use to become narrowed in their application. Thus, while we cannot deny that songs and pianoforte solo-pieces, vocal duets, trios or quartets, and the like, may be quite suitably included under the title Chamber Music, yet, if we use the term in its more customary modern sense, works in such categories are not generally indicated. A pianoforte recital or a concert of vocal works is seldom spoken of as a Chamber Concert, the word Chamber nowadays being understood to apply particularly to ins^umental compositions of a serious type for solo instruments in combination. Were it not that the name Sonata has, in turn, also become narrowed in its application, a better title for this volume would have been "Concerted Sonata Music." But, here again, while instrumental trios, quartets, quintets, and works for larger combinations are veritable sonatas in every sense, present day custom compels us to restrict our use of that name to works written either for pianoforte alone, organ alone, or for pianoforte and one solo instrument in the form of a duet, and to use, instead, the words Chamber Music for a large class of composition for which there would otherwise be no definite or distinctive epithet available. A 1 CHAMBER MUSIC The chapters of this book will therefore treat only of music for piano, stringed, and wind instruments used variously in combination, and deal more especially with the methods of writing employed in works cast in sonata form. The author makes no attempt to provide an abstract treatise on the develop- ment of this special branch of art, nor does he seek to trace the historical progress of Chamber Music to its present high place as the most intellectual and the most fully perfected department of musical composition. Nevertheless, the student is recommended very strongly to approach the subject to a certain extent from this standpoint. The history of the early beginnings of instrumental music has a very considerable bear- ing upon the Chamber Music of the present age. Only those whose knowledge of the subject is very slight will need to be told that modern instrumental music arose in the first instance from a desire to support and assist voices in the performance of madrigals, and only by slow degrees attained to the dignity of an independent existence. The earliest instrumental com- positions, therefore, differed little in form or treatment from the vocal works of the age in which they arose. The transition from this, through the period during which composers delighted in the construction of dance-measures, to the invention of the definite and important characteristics known as "Sonata Form," may be studied from any dictionary or history of music, and it is not the author's intention in the present work to cover a ground which has been trodden again and again in many excellent and valuable books. Few writers, however, have singled out Chamber Music for a separate survey, and the information given under that heading in Grove's Dictiimary of Music and Musicians is unfortunately brief and inexhaus- tive. Fuller particulars may be gained from a discursive, but bright and entertaining volume called The Story of Chamber Mmic, by Mcholas Kilbum (The Walter Scott Publishing Co., 1904), which, while making no attempt at historical completeness or technical scholarship, sets forth an interest- ing series of examples in music type accompanied by running commentaries upon the characteristic styles of the composers quoted, ranging from Philip Emanuel Bach INTRODUCTORY 3 and William Shield to Bruckner and the modern Russian School. The important aspect of Form and its evolution, and other technical points, receive more attention in some extremely lucid lectures on "The Development of Chamber Music" delivered at South Place Institute by Mr. Eichard H. Walthew, and published in a small sixpenny book by Messrs. Boosey & Co. There is also a chapter on Chamber Music to be found, most unexpectedly, in the second volume of the late Professor Prout's valuable work The Orchestra, which deals briefly but ably with some of the main problems to be encountered by the student, but does not attempt any detailed teaching. To the last three sources the writer of the present volume is gratefully indebted for some valuable suggestions in many of his lines of thought. The intended function of this book is, however, totally different. It is the author's chief aim to provide for the student who essays to embark upon the composition of Chamber Music a handbook which may be useful in the same way that a primer or treatise on instrumentation may be helpful to a beginner desiring to compose orchestral music The art of writing music for restricted combinations is so separate from the art of treating large masses of instru- ments that it is surprising that, whereas several admirable textbooks on orchestration exist, not a single volume has been devoted to the special exposition of the principles underlying the composition of true Chamber Music ; — ^more especially sur- prising as the writing of such music is by no means neglected by modern composers and cannot in any sense be regarded either as a dead art or a decaying industry. \VTiile it is necessaiy, with great emphasis, to impress upon the student that it is impossible to teach the special art of writing concerted Chamber Music from a book — quite as impossible as it is to teach creative composition in any form or in any of its branches in such a way — ^it may yet be sur- mised that in this art, as in all others, the actual experience of a composer may have led to discoveries which prompt 4 CHAMBER MUSIC certain generalisations likely to prove helpful to those on the threshold of study. There are indeed so many errors into which a novice may easily fall unless forewarned, so many small technicalities which may not at once be self-evident, so many wrong or ineffective ways of writing for particular instruments, or of combining and balancing their separate tones, that if this book can do no more it will justify its existence should it serve to save the student, by a word in season, from some of the more prevalent faults and miscalculations committed by the average learner. What composer has not gone through the bitter experience of hearing, at a trial performance of some early attempt at ensemble- writing, how many of his carefully designed effects miss fire, and how often the clearness, richness, sonority, or brilliance which he has intended to impart to his music fails to make itself felt in actual performance ! There are some things that experience alone can teach, and as different temperaments have their own separate difficulties to conquer, it is only pos- sible, in a small textljook for general use, to anticipate the most prevalent and the most obviously disastrous faults. An earnest student will admit tliat, in the long run, he has learnt more from his failures than his successes, — that it is often only through doing a thing wrongly that a sense of what is prac- tically and artistically right is instilled into his consciousness. Nowadays nearly all the Chamber Music of the great com- posers may be purchased very cheaply in neat miniature scores. A few shillings will provide the student with quite a library of the best ensemble works, and there is no surer or more interesting way of learning to compose than by delving deeply into acknowledged masterpieces, noting with care the methods adopted, and endeavouring to obtain similar effects by similar means. The composer with original thoughts will soon cease to be merely imitative. It is reported that Schumann, before embarking upon his first string quartet, shut himself up for many days with the scores of Beethoven's quartets ; and yet Schumann, at that period, was already a composer with a well- developed and distinctive style of his own. Nor can we believe that he lost one jot of his personal identity in the INTRODUCTORY 5 process of assimilation, indeed it may be conjectured that he learnt to be more self-reliant from a study of works in which independence of thought and clear forcefulness of utterance are so radiantly exemplified. "Without subscribing to Emer- son's famous aphorism, "the greatest genius is the most indebted man," we may yet be well assured that it is only the small man who scorns to be indebted. If a composer's develop- ment — and in a larger sense the development of successive generations — is to progress upon sound and sane lines, it must hold constant converse with the master utterances that have gone before. While we recognise that there is a necessity for the continual overthrowing of customs which have become staled into conventions, and that it is possible to explore pro- fitably even the regions which have been deliberately rejected and regarded as barren and ugly by our great predecessors, there can be no element of pedantry in recognising that the already proven wisdom and fertility of a previous generation should be made the basis of our own work, or (to vary the metaphor) become a starting- ground from which our flights of fancy may make a safe and steady ascent. It is, perhaps, hardly necessary to point out that a con- siderable knowledge of the ordinary technicalities of music is presupposed on the part of those who would seek to profit by the counsels, comments, and examples which are given in this book. At the same time the average musical amateur will not, it is hoped, be debarred from gathering information, and with this in view no great insistence has been laid upon merely technical points. It is presumed, however, that the student in search of practical guidance in these pages has already acquii'ed an adequate knowledge of Harmony and Counter- point, and that he is conversant with the ordinary laws and principles which govern the practice of writing for at least four independent parts. It is also expected that he has acquaintance with all the clefs in general use, and that he has acquired, or will proceed to acquire from other sources, a know- ledge of the compass, tuning, and tonal qualities of the instru- ments he is liliely to employ, and the power to transpose mentally 6 CHAMBER MUSIC and to read from score with some facility. No attempt will be made to explain these matters. A sound practical knowledge of some stringed instrument is, of course, of immense value to the composer of Chamber Music, but many notable creative musicians have been unable to perform, and it is quite possible to conceive suitable and effective writing for instruments upon which one has not the power to play even so much as a scale. If the composer has some instinctive feeling for tone-colour, and his powers of observation are constantly employed, he will quickly learn to recognise what is suitable to the particular genius of each instrument. A merely elementary equipment as a player is not generally of great value, for, on the accepted principle that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, if the grasp of the tech- nicalities of an instrument be very slight indeed, it may even hamper the composer rather than aid him, by rendering him unduly reticent and timid, and unwilling to embark upon enter- prising passages which would be quite easy and effective in the hands of an accomplished performer. It will be found that the first place in this volume is given to the treatment of the quastet of stringed instruments, and that more space is given to this subject than to any other branch of Chamber Music. Not only is the String Quartet the • most perfect and the most important combination with which we have to deal ; it is also the foundation upon which the com- poser can build up many other schemes of distribution. It requires more skill to drive a tandem than a four-in-hand, and, similarly, a string trio, with its many restrictions and limitations, is far more difficult to accomplish than a quartet, and will be better attempted after some mastery has been obtained in writing for four instruments. A quintet for strings and piano can scarcely be successfully negotiated by the novice who has not first struggled with the difficulties of writing for strings alone. The addition of wind instruments will be a comparatively easy accomplishment when once the balance and strength of the string force is correctly gauged, but to begin one's experi- ence of Chamber writing with the larger mixed combinations, INTRODUCTORY 7 such as septets or octets, would be to court disaster. The piano and wind instruments will he dealt with in their turn, but the strings come first and deserve the largest share of attention and study. The author has endeavoured to make a special feature of the illustrations in music type, from which he believes much help may be derived. These illustrations are, however, of necessity very brief, and are chiefly intended to be supplementary to a more thorough study from complete scores. The scores of many modern works are either unobtainable or expensive, and it is hoped that students may welcome the circumstance that the more inaccessible compositions have been somewhat freely drawn upon. In one particular it is felt that some kind of apology or explanation may be needed. The author has not hesitated to quote passages from well-known composers in order to show what is ineffective or undesirable in certain branches of writing. The quotations are given with the sole idea of helping the student, and of warning him of dangers and temptations that even distinguished writers in the past have been unable successfully to avoid. In no case are any works quoted for the purpose of belittling their composers ; in several instances the faults pointed out are merely faults of technical or unsuit- able distribution, most of the compositions quoted being, as wholes, notable musical conceptions for which the author has the highest admiration. In the majority of cases these faults have arisen from a desire to make the form express more than it is actually and naturally capable of expressing, and it is hoped that a quotation from an orchestrally conceived quartet, printed in close proximity to a few well-chosen bars of undoubted Chamber Music, may help the student to see better the dangers that beset him, and some of the methods by which he may contrive to avoid them. It is the fashion at the present time to deplore what is called the decline of Chamber Music in England, especially in London, and to speak of the flourishing epoch of the Saturday and Monday "Pops" as the "palmy days" of this form of music. 8 CHAMBER MUSIC It may be true that we do not to-day enjoy such a regular and comfortable succession of uniformly excellent perfoimances, but it is also true that the Chamber Music which we do hear is generally listened to under far more favourable conditions, either in buildings more suitable in size than the old St. James's Hall, or in the private rooms of the wealthy and the cultured, where musical entertainments on the required artistic level are far more frequently given than formerly. In many ways the atmosphere of the old "Pops," with their hero- worshipping crowds of enthusiasts, was a little unreal and exotic, quite apart from the fact that the most slenderly conceived and daintily proportioned works were played upon a platform situated at one extremity of a vast building, sounding, at the other extremity, almost like ethereaUsed gramophone records. Indeed it may be said that perfect conditions for the true enjoyment of concerted Chamber Music cannot be established without," firstly, entirely eliminating the virtuoso element, and, secondly, bringing the players into close enough touch with the audience for the sound of the strings to retain its complete brilliance and resonance, and for the most refined niumces to be clearly audible to all. Chamber Music is not for the crowd, and one cannot readily attune oneself to receive it if the crowd is present. It has no glamour of vivid colour- ing — it is in music very much what a water-colour drawing is in the realm of painting. The scheme as a whole is more sub- dued, and instead of the heavy, rich layers of pigment, completely hiding the rough canvas upon which they are imposed, we find a soft quiet toning, every shade of which is important and tell- ing, laid, with an unerring hand, upon a surface the delicate texture of which is still visible, contributing its own value to the charm and reality of the whole picture, as well as receiving and absorbing the impressions which the well-guided brushes have laid upon it. If the ideal conditions are difficult of attainment and seldom completely attained, the opportunities of hearing the best Chamber Music in London under fairly satisfactory con- ditions have enormously increased, and almost every provincial town of importance possesses one or more societies for the INTRODUCTORY 9 especial cultivation of this delightful branch of art. This being so, the would-be composer of such music may be urged to seize every opportunity of hearing the best works of all periods as frequently as possible, for by attending well rehearsed and ably rendered performances, with, wherever possible, the scores of the works to be played in his hand, he may learn more than any book can possibly claim to teach. He will find many opportunities of hearing such music under good conditions, and, even if some superior persons declare to him that Chamber Music " is not what it used to be," he may recall with a smile the classical retort of one of Mr. Punch's young men, who, on hearing his favourite journal criticised in similar fashion, replied, " It never was ! " With evidences on every hand of a healthy and genuine interest in listening to such music, it is natural that our own composers should continue to exercise their skill in the com- position of ensemble works of an intimate character. It may be doubted if any country in Europe could furnish a more imposing array of earnest and ardent young musicians than is to be found in England at the present time, and it is extremely gratifying to note that the majority of these men are devoting a large part of their time to the composition of Chamber Music. It is even more gratifying to observe that this music is, as a whole, true to the best traditions of its kind, and, while not lacking in the natural impatience of youth, exhibits few leanings towards sensationalism. Indeed, it has contrived to keep itself singularly pure, and untainted with that turgid pessimism which has rendered unwholesome so much recent orchestral music, both British and foreign. In these days when no art and no separate branch of it is safe from the meddlesome interference of ever-ready enthu- siasts, whose bookish ambitions must somehow be gratified, it is customary to offer some formal and courteous words of apology or explanation before setting seriously to grapple with the problems to be faced. The present author, not less modest he hopes than others who have meddled before him, would only enter one little plea — a plea for indulgence. Ho has endeavoured to grapple with a large subject which has hitherto lo CHAMBER MUSIC been neglected by the writer of educational books. He has striven in so doing to avoid pedantry, and the intrusion of narrow-minded prejudices. He has tried, wherever possible, not to lay down the law, or to don the professorial cap and gown, or to speak as from a seat of authority. It is for all serious defections in pursuit of this almost unattainable achieve- ment that he craves the indulgence of his readers, as he offers for their consideration the first published treatise on the art and practice of Chamber Music. CHAPTER II. THE STRING QUARTET. Some general principles, as exemplified in the quartets of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven. If the control of balance and tone-colour is a difficult matter in orchestration, it is still more difficult in the writing of chamber music. The slighter the structure, the more easily it is disturbed or upset ; the more delicate the general tone, the more disastrously is it overbalanced and spoiled by a misplaced or too vivid splash of colour. The composer of Chamber Music must, above all things, be earnest and thoughtful. He who would be successful in such a sphere must possess a strong feeling for the niceties of form, and cultivate a sense for the highest refinements of detail. Rough-and-ready methods, carelessness, or superficiality are alike fatal. The medium is also utterly unsuitable for the display of emotional excesses, the best Chamber Music always having a markedly intellectual side, and however vigorous and wild it may be in conception the actual presentation of the ideas must be tempered by a regard for the delicate proportions of the machinery employed to present them. The foregoing remarks, applicable to Chamber Music in general, are more especially to be borne in mind with regard to the composition of concerted works for strings alone, where the clarity and transparency of the medium are most marked, and the tone-quality is most uniform and subdued. Of such works that which is of the greatest importance, and requires 12 CHAMBER MUSIC the highest perfection of balance, is undoubtedly the String Quartet. The String Quartet is always written for two violins, a viola, and a violoncello, and as these instruments are in them- selves the most generally employed in Chamber Music, and in this particular combination the most thoroughly and success- fully exploited, no apology is needed for giving to the String Quartet the foremost place and the most extensive survey in the present volume. In the very brief article upon quartets in the new edition of Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, the statement is vouchsafed that " the origin of the Quartet was the inven- tion of four-part harmony." The most that can be inferred from this singular generalisation, which is evidently in- tended to apply to instrumental music only, is that until the quartet became an actual and established mode of expression it was more customary for composers to write their Chamber Music either for three stringed or wind instruments, or for combinations in which a keyboard instrument provided the harmony to melodic solo parts. There are, of course, isolated examples of quartets of stringed instruments being employed by composers at very early periods of musical history — AUegri, for instance, who died in 1652, composed a quartet for two violins, viola, and basso di viola. Speaking broadly, however, the quartet, as we know it, may be said to have been the invention of Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), who certainly did not invent four-part harmony, but who prob- ably, in the first instance, regarded the combination of four well-balanced stringed instruments as the most suitable means of adapting or reducing a work of symphonic proportions for Chamber use. The strings in the orchestra had for some time previously been arranged in four parts, the violins being divided, to correspond with the soprano and alto voices, the violas taking the tenor part,^ and the violoncellos (strengthened by the ' In many early scores the viola doubles the 'cello part ; even in the first symphony of Beethoven it has very little independence. The reason for this was that the viola was so little cultivated that it was often impossible to obtain skilful players in sufficient numbers to maintain an independent part. THE STRING QUARTET 13 double-basses at the octave below) the bass part. Thus the early quartets of Haydn are a kind of adaptation of orchestral writing for strings, and often mere skeletons in design, giving little promise of the richly detailed independent form which was to follow. In most instances the principal interest lay entirely in the first violin part, the other instruments providing little more than mere accompaniment. The emancipation from this idea was, however, very rapid, and before long it became quite evident that the true constructive principle to be aimed at in this branch of writing was the equal interest and importance of each part; and although the development of this idea was not perhaps fully carried out until Beethoven's time, Haydn (in his later quartets), and more especially Mozart, gave that boldness and freedom to the lower instruments which, in the beginning, had only been considered suitable for the first violin. There have been, it is true, some defections from this unquestionably sound principle. Quartets such as those of Spohr, in which the first violin was treated as a solo instru- ment, enjoyed a very wide popularity in their day, but the fact that they suffered the penalty of an early death is enough in itself to prove that this re-adoption of earlier methods represented a false step. If we hear to-day (and it is very" unlikely that we will) a quartet in which three of the parts are continuously subordinate to the soloist, we feel instinctively that this is bad. Chamber Music, however excellent or beautiful the effect obtained may be. We may consider it indispensable, then, that each instru- ment which forms the quartet must have interesting and important passages to perform. But the idea must be carried further than this before the full meaning of inde- pendence can be understood. The demand for the separate interest of each part is in itself a recognition of the individual sensitiveness and interpretative powers of the several performers who constitute the quartet. A quartet of strings is not a machine, like a keyboard instrument. It presents an even less mechanical aspect than an orchestra, which is, to some extent, played upon by the conductor. It is, in truth, a com- bination of four separate personalities, each of whom, while 14 CHAMBER MUSIC working for the unity of the whole effect, has, in a sense, a separate character and individuality as a player. And — what is more important still from the composer's standpoint — the idea of independence implies a recognition of the special genius and characteristics of each kind of instrument employed. The composer will quickly recognise the essential qualities of the violin, its supreme capabilities of pure expressiveness, its elasticity and agility, the brilliance and bright quality of the high notes on the E string, and the richness, depth, and power of which the G string is capable. It has more versa- tility, and can command a more extensive range of expression than any other stringed instrument. With the viola there is a certain uniform richness throughout its entire compass, a tone-quality in its higher notes which is quite different from that of the violin, whilst, though (in an, artist's hands) it is capable of being almost as agile as its smaller sister, it is, at all events, less generally suited to the execution of light or dainty passages. The viola has a sound box which is very flat in proportion to its size, and this sometimes gives to the tones it produces a slightly nasal quality. Many attempts have been made to rectify this, but none have been really successful. The problem is that the viola must- not be too large to be held in the same position as the violin, and cannot ' be really large enough to give, at the pitch to which it is tuned, a precisely similar quality of tone. Owing to the greater difference in size, and consequent truer proportion in regard to pitch, the tone of the violoncello is more similar in quality to the violin than that of the viola — and it is sometimes necessary to bear this fact in view when writing a string quartet. The violoncello, indeed, has its own special character apart from its difference in pitch. Its notes resemble, in some respects, the quality of a baritone voice, and it is especially suitable for lyrical passages. The higher notes on the A string are very telling, but naturally in quartet writing the middle .and lower registers will be more frequently used. The pizzicato has a full pithy tone which gives good support to the other instruments, and is more generally effective for THE STRING QUARTET 15 frequent use than the pizzicato of the violin or viola. The violoncello has the power of agile movement too, but extremely rapid passages on the lower strings are often not very effective or clear, and care should be taken not to write melodic phrases on the A string too constantly or insistently, as the tone is apt, by its very sweetness and richness, to pall and become cloying. It is impossible to suggest in a few words the special capabilities of these three different members of the same harmonious family ; much more information on this point can be gathered from the study of the musical examples printed later in this book, from the perusal of scores, and especially, from the hearing of quartet playing. But it is highly im- portant that the student should realise at the very outset that this difference in tone-quality, though slight in comparison with the difference in timbre of various wind instruments, may be accentuated and made an extremely important factor. A melody lying between and for instance, might be played by violin, viola, or violoncello equally readily, and it is necessary for the composer to obtain an accurate mental impression of the effect of its performance, as a solo, in each of these three different ways. This may seem to some an elementary and almost too self- evident point to press home, but the more alike in tone-colour the instruments which a composer combines may be, the greater is the danger of his failing to recognise the differences that do exist. Many an otherwise estimable string quartet is dull in colouring from the fact that the instruments are treated throughout in too uniform a way. There is no denying that the similarity of quality gives us one of the finest virtues possessed by this combination of instruments — the possibility of preserving a nearly perfect uniformity of tone. It is a similarity which enables a composer to pass from instrument to instrument with an almost imperceptible change of colour if i6 CHAMBER MUSIC he so desires, using the quartet somewhat as a single instru- ment and spreading his passages throughout the entire compass, from the lowest 'cello notes to the highest tones of the violin. It enables him also to produce strongly forcible unison passages of one decided hue, and the most beautiful chord effects in perfectly balanced harmonies with unity and smoothness of tone. At the same time there are places where a recognition of the separate genius and colour capacity of each instrument will be of great value to the composer, and he should rarely lose sight of these possibilities which are so precious to him when he seeks for variety of interest, and so helpful when, in lyrical vein, he has ' songs-without-words ' to sing. It is not needful further to emphasise these two points. The student will doubtless quickly recognise that much of the charm of the string quartet is to be found in the strong contrasts obtainable by the juxtaposition of passages depending for their effect upon unity of tone, and those depending upon the use of the separate instruments as individual solo voices. It would seem hardly necessary to quote passages in which the instruments are distributed easily and smoothly in four parts, but in such an instance as 'the following, — the opening of Mozart's Quartet in G major, No. 1, dedicated to Haydn, — in similar strain to which numerous other examples might be cited, the effect of unity, simplicity, and perfect balance ia better obtainable by a quartet of strings than in other way. EX. 1. Allegro vivace assai. 1st Vious. 2nd Violin. Viola. 'Cello. 5r=^ e3= 3^^== :|S ^^P3 THE STRING QUARTET 17 Such a theme so treated is essentially quartet music. On a keyboard instrument half its value would be lost through the impossibility to give to it the gracious smoothness of phrasing that it demands — on an orchestra its delicate meaning and intimacy of feeling would be quite unobtainable. More- over, the immediate continuation of the above extract gives us a taste of a different method, the four bars which follow those quoted being equally instructive from another point of view. EX. 2. ^^ r3=--|»= ^^^^^E^= z&rS: m Here the viola has a graceful phrase, which is echoed by the second violin — beginning on the same notes but not sounding the same owing to the difference of colouring — and then the entry of the first violin in the higher octave, and the rounding ofi" of the phrase with four perfectly balanced chords in the three lower instruments, show us a specially characteristic solo B i8 CHAMBER MUSIC violin passage, and an admirably simple method of enhancmg the beauty of its contour. It would be hard to find anywhere eight bars of a quartet which so admirably typify in a short space the best possible kind of writing for the instruments. The bars which immediately ensue are also highly interesting as exemplifying that natural and unforced kind of contra- puntal writing which is more effectively displayed in a quartet than through any other medium. At the twenty-fifth bar the second subject is reached. The distribution of the instruments here is likewise instructive. The second violin has at the beginning the leading theme, the first violin resting for six bars : — EX. 3. 2nd Vious, Viola. "Cixio. i gyj^ =51= ^= TS^—tS^ l y iff ^^ ^^^m ^^ The management of the lower parts here affords an ex- cellent example of the ri^t way of doing a very simple thing — the beautiful swinging rhythm of the melody being made more beautiful by the separate pulsation of the viola and 'cello parts, which, without predominating, do not merely accompany but have an interest of their own. The arrangement of the four instruments at the re-entry of the first violin to continue the strain is also well deserving of close study : — THE STRING QUARTET 19 EX. 4. gjg l ^^^gl^ ^ ^ ^B^B. j^^t: gEJ^Jj^l^Eg Eg±3S "f^r= P^ ^S-^ES ^ :S.:==:il=r?l tUr^i&d =Si=it: The student should note the effect of the viola tone accent- uating the melody in the tenth below, the second violin, having had its say, becoming subservient again and continuing with a share of the fanciful phrases that were allotted previously to the viola and 'cello. The whole of this charming and most perfectly devised quartet will amply repay study. As in Orchestration, so also in Chamber Music, a student may gather at starting a vaster store of helpful information upon technical points from the perusal of a Mozart score than from any other source; In Mozart's quartets may be seen the most valuable and effective devices clearly set forth in a small space, with little elaboration of detail and no harmonic complexity to obscure the point. And one need certainly never be ashamed of being indebted to Mozart — when almost every composer of great eminence from Beethoven to Tsehaikowsky and Strauss has solemnly confessed, in work or word, a similar indebtedness ! To attempt to imitate Mozart's style nowadays by constructing square and clear-cut melodic periods is, of course, neither desirable nor likely to lead to good results, but no better model could be found in the matter of balance and " scoring " (if the word may be permitted) however modern and advanced the student's ideas may be. Of the ten quartets by Mozart, published in the convenient Payne's Miniature Scores (which are obtainable at a few pence apiece from Messrs. Donajowski), every student should make himself thoroughly familiar with at least five— No. 1 in G (here quoted), No. 8 in C (with its singularly 20 CHAMBER MUSIC modern-toned opening Adagio, over which many purists have solemnly shaken their heads), Na_24_in D (more richly elaborated and more ambitious in polyphonic device than most of the works of that period), No^4.in B flat (a charming and most characteristic work), and No. ilSuin A (remarkable for the wonderfully wrought variations in the Andante, and the contrapuntal freedom of the Finale).^ It is more difficult to make a definite selection from the quartets of Haydn, of which seventy-seven are published by (the same firm, but nothing can justify the composition student in treating them with the neglect which falls to their lot at the hands of concert-givers. Most of his earlier quartets are, though graceful and charming, of slender interest from the constructive aspect, and rather thin in tone. But it should not be forgotten that although Haydn, in his early days, wrote works which gave Mozart abundantly suggestive material upon which to build, in his later years he, in his turn, learnt much from Mozart, whom he long outlived; and a few of Haydn's quartet movements are so advanced in character that they may almost be regarded as connecting links between Mozart and Beethoven. If we take only one instance of an isolated outstanding passage, which occurs in the Quartet in_G,_Op,_54^ NoJ,=— a work which is entirely happy and comfortable, and not, in its main outlines, in any way different from others of its period — we shall see evidences of this advancement, and more than a suggestion of that indulgence in the unexpected which became so remarkable a feature in the music of Beethoven's maturity. An ordinary perfect cadence in G major is reached when the following pianissimo passage ensues : EX. 5. 1st AND Violins. 2nd Viola and 'Cello. m Allegretto, ppw W 1»- ^LCJ' ILjCJ" ^-^—=== zzj- 1 The numbers here given are the list numbers of Payne's Scores. THE STRING QUARTET 11 ^E^3EE^m r bm: ^= Beethoven would doubtless have allowed the crescendo which begins in the third bar to have lasted till the end of the fourth bar, and made the change of key on a sudden pianissimo — he would also, probably, have scorned the device of immedi- ately making an exact repetition of the whole passage, as Haydn does, leading from the key of B flat into the key of D flat. But at the same time the tendency exhibited here, and elsewhere in the later quartets, is unmistakably significant. Scarcely less striking is Haydn's forcible use of unisonic subjects and strongly defined passages in two parts. The following quotation from the Quartet in D minor. Op. 76, • No. 2, is interesting for its boldness no less than for its striking theme, presented in canonical form and in a five-bar rhythm. EX. 6. Allegro ma no nirop po. _ i • '♦ The whole of the Minuet of this quartet (of which the above extract forms the opening bars) is distributed in this clear and decisive way, and the movement produces an excellent and stimulating effect decidedly akin to that achieved by many of the more vigorous and emphatic pages of Beethoven. Beethoven wrote sixteen string quartets which cover a very wide range of thought and exhibit extraordinary progress of constructive development. It is customary to divide Beethoven's works into groups representing three periods, and with the quartets this division can very easily be made. In 22 CHAMBER MUSIC his early style he wrote six, published as Op. 18 in the year 1801; of his middle period there are four strikingly fine examples, the three dedicated to Count Easoumowsky (Op. 54), and the work in Eflat (Op. 74), which is commonly known as the " Harp Quartet " ; the rugged and impressive composition in F minor (Op. 95) may be regarded as occupying an isolated position between the middle and third periods, in which latter category the last five quartets (Op. 1 2 7, 1 3 0, 1 3 1, 1 3 2, and 1 3 5) are most emphatically to be placed, indeed they are without question the most typically striking examples of that strangely elusive and rhapsodical manner for which we have no description more expressive or less clumsy than " late-Beethoven." From the study of the quartets of Haydn and Mozart we can pass very easily and naturally to the inspection of the first six of Beethoven. Were it the function of this book to deal with the development of form, or what may be better termed the breaking away from formality in structure, much might be said regarding the treatment of thematic material in these particular works, but except in so far as such developments affected the style of writing for the strings, and encouraged experiments in novel ways of distributing the parts and strengthening the total force of tone available, the present work is not concerned with the evolution of constructive principles. Speaking broadly, it may be said that Beethoven's quartets sound fuller and more sonorous than tliose of his predecessors, more especially in the slow movements, in which he attempted a far greater richness of expression than had been previously considered applicable to Chamber Music. The contrasts are sharper, and the colouring more decided. His habit of playing with short and at first apparently insignificant phrases led the way to a more consistent recognition of the separate indivi- duality of each instrument, the importance of which has already been emphasised earlier in this chapter. In the first of the six quartets. Op. 18 (in all probability not the first to be written of that set, although published as No. 1), we find a subject to the first movement that would prob- ably not have appealed particularly to either of Beethoven's famous predecessors. THE STRING QUARTET 23 Allegro con 6no. P EX. 7. _ It IS given forth at first with the greatest possible simplicity m unison, by all the four strings. But before many bars are over one realises that the rhythm of the first five notes is a kind of topic of conversation; it appears, with gentle insistence, upon each instrument in turn, serving now as the fragment of an extended melody, now as a figure of accom- paniment in an inner part, and now as an ornamentation of a pedal-bass which supports a cantabile melody played by the first violin. It is obvious that this method of composition is extremely well suited to the quartet combination, in which, it finds its most natural exponent. The second quartet of the same set has all the grace and delicacy of Mozart, and, added to this, the same felicity of treatment of small phrases that has been noted in No. 1. In Nos. 3 and 4, except in the matter of an added richness of quality in places, there is little advance to be noted in treatment, indeed the Finale of No. 4 in C minor seems almost like a return to the comfortable merriment of the early Haydn quartets in method, with its- regular subdivisions and repeats. No. 5, in A, has the real Beethoven ring in its first movement, and some interesting distributions of parts in the Menuetto, where the first and second violins have the initial statement of the subject all to themselves : EX. 8. 1st Violin. 24 CHAMBER MUSIC No. 6, a bright work in Bflat, has nothing remarkably novel in its treatment except for a wonderful Adagio passage (La Malinconia) which precedes the last movement, and is full of fresh suggestiveness and promise of wonderful develop- ments. When we come to the second period quartets, especially the three dedicated to Count Easoumowsky, we are in a totally different world, and if the student will turn from his Mozart and Haydn scores to the perusal of Beethoven's Op. 59 he will find an astonishing change of method. In each of these three works there is the full dignity attached to a composition of symphonic proportions. The quartet seems no longer a miniature, though the medium is the same, and its limitations are never exposed, as in so many quartets by more modern composers. "With the possible exception of Schubert, in two examples, no one but Beethoven has so completely extracted the uttermost from the four instruments, no one has so cunningly contrived, by the resources of contrast, and control over a wide range of emotional expressiveness, to give the impression of Titanic strength with such a slight and delicate machinery at his disposal. It is, of course, due to the power of the mmic more than to any actual technical distribution of parts, and yet if we study these three quartets closely we may learn a few of the secrets of Beethoven's magic. In the first of the three quartets we find an immediate instance of the symphonic dignity alluded to above. The opening Allegro is broader and grander in design, and contains subject-matter far more noble in conception than anything attempted in previously written quartet movements. There is a sense of space in the big melodic sweep of the magnificent first subject. EX. 9. Allegro, m/e dolce. 'Cello. cresc. ~fS-r (^ |— -= 1- f— — a-^- Sib-j» f H — L_ 1 _U=l THE STRING QUARTET 25 It is built upon only two harmonies for eighteen bars, a mode of treatment greatly accentuating its pure diatonic 7C strength. One hesitates to hold up the method employed in this accompaniment as an example for imitation. For seven bars the second violin and viola have repeated notes, EX. 10. «:««:« and, on the entry of the first violin to continue the strain, the same method of support continues for ten bars of dominant harmony. One feels instinctively, however, that the dignity and import of every note of the melody are so great that any- thing more pretentious, or more shifting in its interest, in the other parts would utterly destroy the character of the music. The time for innovation and surprise comes a little later in the movement. When, just before the entry of the second subject, we come across such a remarkable passage as the following : — iS/Ji — m 1^ ic_- «/>) sfp sfp : ^^ h -i ip:: 26 CHAMBER MUSIC we realise how completely Beethoven succeeded in remoulding the means at his disposal. As soon as his forceful personality demanded it, he was no longer content with harmonic bases of an ordinary simple kind for the expression of his ideas. Equally interesting harmonically, and by reason of the novelty of the part-distribution, is the succession of thin and full chords which occurs, in different keys, three times in the course of the Allegro. Here, indeed, is a valuable lesson in the art of obtaining colour and contrast without overstepping any bounds, or losing the sense that a quartet has for its exponents only four interpreters. This large and deliberate first movement is succeeded by a ^cherzo equally expansive and original, though in a totally different way. Beginning with a bewitchingly playful rhythm, of which much use is made throughout : — EX. 13. 'Cello. HE it has alternating passages of tenderness and grace : — THE STRING QUARTET EX. 14. 27 VtOlA AHD 'C£LLO. t;j2*^ and episodes of vivid and almost fierce rhythmical accen- tuation : — EX. 15. "^ — «/ s/ g 1 Most assuredly no such fantastic revelry of brusque geniality had ever been attempted before. Humour was no new quality in ^Single notes with double stems in the same part (as in these four bars) indicate the use of two strings. Thus the note D is here intended to be played upon the fourth string as well as upon the open third string, a device which is useful when special emphasis is demanded. 28 CHAMBER MUSIC music, it is true.but this is something more : it is veritably witty, one might almost say epigrammatic, in the sting of its brilliance ! In the Adagio molto e mesto, which forms the third movement, we have a fullness and intensity of utterance which is almost as new as the caprice of the previous section. The parts are woven together with an elaboration of figurative device and a variety of workmanship which satisfy completely the requisite that a quartet should be a work for four soloists, and not merely an effective combination of four stringed instruments. Very decoratively outlined, as an instance, is the long violin passage which leads to the trill under which the theme of the last move- ment makes its first appearance, without pause or preparation. This tune, labelled Thime Eitsse, is avowedly derived from a traditional folk-melody, and it is interesting to note that this quotation and one other melody (the TMme Busse of the next quartet of the same opus) are the only known instances of Beethoven's use of borrowed material, except in connection with variations, in the whole catalogue of his works. They were doubtless introduced as a compliment to Count Easoumowsky, who was at that time Eussian Ambassador in the Austrian Court. The subject of this Finale, in passing through Beethoven's hands, has little left of its original Slavonic character, for what was once a slow and somewhat sombre melody in a minor key is transformed into the following brightly energetic and pointed phrase, which seems immediately to acquire all the emphatic independeiice of a real Beethoven idea : — EX. 16. THE STRING QUARTET 29 How well the vitality of this material is sustained the student must see for himself from the score— as an example of continuous unflagging energy there is nothing better in the whole of Chamber Music, each instrument having its due share in the bustling passages which huny on with scarcely a momentary pause for breath till the last page is reached. Then, with dramatic suddenness, there comes a curious perden- dod passage in which the Thdme Biisse itself is played Adagio, nine bars of Presto afterwards bringing the work to a strongly vigorous conclusion. The second of the Easoumowsky quartets, the famous E minor, smaller in dimensions than the first, is equally fine, and even more full of original and surprising things. The opening of the first movement is portentous, suggesting sup- pressed passion and unrest, and compelling attention with its remarkable sequential construction. EX. 17. 30 CHAMBER MUSIC We find here, also, a similar freedom in part-writing, and many passages in which the special characteristics of the instruments are strikingly exhibited. The dark hue of the C string of the viola has seldom been employed more signifi- cantly, for instance, than in the following passage, where the sinuous phrases of 'cello and violin usher in a more serene theme in G major, which brings. a little relief to the strain and tension of the music. EX. 18 .r-r-i .^ 1st AND 2nd Violins. VlOlA. 'Cello. ^^=S== \m — C -1 i —^ ^td==t= ^ |HHH=**T--=r- — rzL_3=^ ■i^r^^-^y- -S^ -S:^---S:^- .S.-:3--J- V^JJ: sf ^^5^ 31 hk- #. -■ — ' Later on considerable use is made of syncopated figures in which 3-4 time is suggested by the insistence (in the lower parts) upon the first, third and fifth quavers of each bar. The slow movement is again rich in harmonic colour and rhythmic device. It has for its main subject a theme of great dignity and impressiveness : — THE STRING QUARTET EX. 19. 31 Towards the close of the Adagio this theme is given with added power, the distribution of the parts being here a fine lesson in the judicious use of sustained double-notes to give strength to the texture where increased sonority is demanded. 32 CHAMBER MUSIC #«,-f^.-:i= P z?^ — -i— - i [ -1— P — : fc- — » ^ — ^^ __j:r-_^- p — s *i The Allegretto which follows, in its delicate yet persistent treatment of a charming rhythmic idea, is fascinatingly wistful. EX. 21. IstVioun. 3C=:9 It is in the middle section or " Trio " of this movement that the second TMme Bitsse, already alluded to, makes its appearance as the subject of a kind of abbreviated fugue. EX. 22. 2kd Violin. The student should notice with what independence the triplet figures of the second violin cross and recross the outlines of the main melody. This triplet passage is taken up THE STRING QUARTET 33 in turn by all the other instruments, and then, to vary the device and save the scheme from a suggestion of monotony (for it keeps persistently to its regular alternation of E major and B major in subject and answer throughout), the accom- panying passage becomes staccato quavers in place of triplets. Lastly, we have a bracing stretto passage, extremely bold in its disregard of notes that " hit " and clash with one another. EX. 23. Viola, 'c^^o- IME^ ^^I^E^^^E^^gE^E^E^ 2i(D Violin. Very emphatic, almost defiant, is the chief subject of the Finale, more in C major than E minor, but continually \ coming to a cadence in the latter key, as if to apologise c 34 CHAMBER MUSIC for its arrogance, and then impudently scampering off again, as much in C major as before ! EX. 24. rFretito. 1st Vioun. 2nd Violin, Viola and 'Cello. The playful treatment of the three ascending notes of the subject is one of the special features of the score ; they are tossed to and fro from one instrument to another, ultimately landing us each time in C majdt to begin the same wild theme all over again. The whole conception is astonishing in its vivacity. There is less defiance in a secondary subject which claims attention, not only for its beauty and grace, but also as an instance of a novel treatment of the instruments. tSt f!: ^ fe ^ €" E3p^^ m ^ THE STRING QUARTET 35 It f=^ f f f ^^ 1 % ! 1 — cresc, ~^ 1" — V~ SF -= 1 1 -= d— r 1 ;— a-esc. T rd- _T H — j!_ r^—p- SSj*-= '■ -^ 1— «^s= -.^ r cresc. ^^J=^=e _j , r ^ c Sr- r 1 JJ^ \=^ — ^ :r^^ The transference of the subject to the two lower instruments in thirds, whilst the first and second violins take up the accom- panying phrases, gives an example of one of those specially effective devices which belong to string-quartet writing alone. It is worthy of notice that when the same theme re-occurs later in the movement, in the key of E minor, a slight difference in the distribution of the parts is used. Beethoven gives the upper part of the passage in thirds to the 'cello, the viola playing the bass, and this gives a different colouring to the melody, though in other respects the arrangement of the instruments is precisely similar. The third Easoumowsky quartet, in C major, less deep and less emotional than either of its two companions, is quite as interesting as an example of high perfection in quartet writing. The mysteriously vague slow introduction, with its indecision of tonality, suggests, perhaps, a rather more surprising Allegro 2^ CHAMBER MUSIC Vivace than that which is actually forthcoming. For in this buoyant and unclouded first movement the ideas are as clear and direct as those of Mozart, whose style of part-writing is to some extent reflected, though there are passages in the development, as the following quotation will prove, in which the Beethoven touch is unmistakable. EX. 26. Allegro vivace. Viola and 'Cello. 4^,4- -r 1 j id- _ j 1_ -1 =^ ftbai g_ dim. 5^ p ^^ -?^-3@ ^■^ 1 ' --^-^ U^=q J'-g^ -S-^r 1 — ■s.j^.:^: -^ 1 r,^ f f ' 1 Incidentally this passage gives us another example of the use of the two upper and the two lower instruments in pairs, fully as effective as the illustration immediately preceding it, though in a different way. It also exhibits Beethoven's method of presenting, in Chamber Music, a kind of canonic device in which he frequently indulged in orchestral works. The Andante con Moto, which forms the second movement, is delicate and tender, and seeks to sound no great emotional depths. But the easy melodious flow of all the parts from beginning to end is especially interesting ; so also is the novel use of the pizzicato pedal-bass notes which form so important a part in the scheme. The facility of workmanship suggests Schubert, and the suave style of the music, with its constant repetitions of short phrases, anticipates the fashions of a still later period. In the Minuet which succeeds this placid Andante there are certainly no developments or anticipations upon which to remark. It is, indeed, rather an unlooked-for re- version to earlier methods. The Finale, however, into which THE STRING QUARTET 37 the Minuet leads, gives us a magnificent example of the fugal style of writing which assumes so very important an aspect with Beethoven in his later works. Of this more will be said in the next chapter when dealing with special characteristics, and if any further proof were needed of his wonderful power of making a quartet of strings interpret ideas of symphonic, even dramatic, import, a perusal of the examples on pp. 40, 41, and 44, would amply supply it. Two more quartets of Beethoven may perhaps fittingly be mentioned while deahng with general principles, the works in Efiat major, Op. 74, and in F minor. Op. 95. The Eflat quartet may be said to come almost at the end of the " middle period " works, and the F minor to occupy a place by itself, possessing, as it does, attributes of ruggedness which are scarcely a marked characteristic of the works dedicated to Easoumowsky, though hardly as yet conveying that curious suggestion of groping amongst unfathomable things which gives the final six quartets a place by themselves in musical literature. The Quartet in Eflat begins with a somewhat prolonged Poco Adagio, the theme of which sounds almost like a question, — an anxious appeal which no words could express and no answer satisfy. Poco adagio. EX. 27. Viola ahd 'Cbu.0, We feel prepared, perhaps, for a less direct message than that which is accorded to us when the Allegretto, which ensues, dismisses the interrogations. Maybe it is merely Beethoven's way of emphasising the depth of the question by telling us that no reply is possible. 38 CHAMBER MUSIC EX. 28. Allegretto. Nevertheless the movement has many technical points of special interest, some of which, successful as they are when pre- sented here by the genius of Beethoven, might prove dangerous if set forth as examples for us to imitate. The most outstanding feature is certainly the extensive and unusual employment of pizzicato arpeggio figures, passing from one instrument to another. The preponderance of these passages has led to the rather silly title of the "Harp Quartet" being given to the work, and also, as is generally the case when the public is able to call a piece of music by a kind of pet name, to an enormous increase in its popularity. Immediately after the statement of the principal theme we have passages in which pizzicato notes appear, first below, and then above the repeated chords. This is but a suggestion, however, of what is to come. In the Development Section of the movement the idea is very much extended, and we have several remarkable passages of which the following is a sample : — THE STRING QUARTET 39 EX. 30. The above quotation also gives an excellent proof of what was said earlier in this chapter concerning the possibility in quartet- writing of preserving a uniformity of tone-colour, and spreading passages across from one instrument to another. It may be remarked, however, that the differences in tone-quality are less marked in pis^icato passages than in those played with 40 CHAMBER MUSIC a bow, and it is also far easier to join together a succession of plucked notes (which are necessarily staccato) than groups of smooth figures. The last two bars of the foregoing examples, for instance, where the arpeggios are played col arco, are seldom as effective in actual performance as those which precede them. There are other places in the same movement where the part- distribution must decidedly be considered risky and of doubtful effect, but on these questions more will be said later. This origiaially conceived Allegretto is succeeded by an Adagio, which has great depth of sentiment. Its principal theme belongs to that characteristic class of subjects known to the Germans as " unendlichen Melodien." The first violin at the beginning soars high above its companions, giving forth a song of exquisite sweetness and tenderness, well adapted to the decorative treatment it receives later on when its phrases are embellished with fanciful ornamentations, and the accom- paniment is also elaborated and greatly enriched. EX. 31. Cantabile. The Presto which forms the third movement is remarkably vivid, and in some places so symphonic in idea that it seems almost like a sketch for an orchestral scherzo. Its main theme, indeed, is curiously suggestive of the C minor Symphony, a suggestion which its continuation after the first double bar does nothing to dispel. EX. 32. Isx ViOUK. 'Cello, THE STRING QUARTET 41 i ^^. t^m-^- Ee^ ^g^E^ "T — p — n= — =r I' I I I— r i^^fSTz* =1=1=1; r-h- r-|- P it*s ^ =-l^-! -!--i-4-4 -f-1^ s#^^ — --i_— *. i^j: a? ^. ^ ^-y- ^=*WF ?r -^rr "•— ^- -W-JrJ ^33 S^^-d:^^ =3= d^=^ .1-- ,j, ^ r,=i=d -•U- ■w J-^' This movement is so full of tone combinations which are admirable as models, both in colour and design, that it is difficult to resist the temptation to quote from it at great length. Let us content ourselves with one more extract which will, in itself, illustrate many points. The large capricious skips in the 'cello part here are extremely effectively devised, the melody is most fancifully poised and balanced, whilst no better illustration could be given of the value of a gently insistent rhythm than the thematic repeated G's which give the second violin part such distinction at this stage. The viola for the moment is silent. EX. 33. 1st and 2nd ViOUHS. A 42 CHAMBER MUSIC A long diminuendo and a pianissimo passage follow, in which the 'cello murmurs on its lowest strings for several bars, and then a dramatically sudden forte chord of C major ushers in the trio. Here the speed is increased, crotchets being the shortest notes used, and the rhythm resembling f . If the scherzo itself suggests the Fifth Symphony, there is almost as strong a foreshadowing here of the Ninth, the crotchets walk- ing up and down the scale with a regular precision which decidedly recalls to one's mind the splendour and majesty of the most wonderful of all scherzos. The movement is very long, the trio coming twice and the main material three times, whilst there is a Coda which comes to a pause on the first inversion of a dominant seventh in E flat. Then, with a serenity most welcome after so much bustle and unrest, a calm theme begins, which, with the six finely-wrought variations that follow it, forms a fitting end to a great and most imaginative work. The Quartet in F minor (Op. 95) is shorter and more concise than the work just reviewed, but the ideas are more advanced and the workmanship generally more intricate. The first subject of the opening Allegro con brio literally springs out upon us with a unison passage of colossal force and ruggedness. EX. 34. 1st and 2hd Violins (Viola 8ve and 'Cello two 8ves lower). -m J. S0 flf - It is one of those themes that arrest attention at once and set the listener speculating on the possible developments that might ensue. In treatment (though certainly not in senti- ment) we might compare its place in the work with the similarly emphatic first subject of the Quartet in F (Op. 18, No. 1) dealt with on page 23. The first five notes are obviously seized upon and made to serve both in accompani- ment and in episodes of a dialogue character, with the result that the general tone of the movement is decidedly busy, and THE STRING QUARTET 43 the advent of such tender passages of pure quartet- writing as the following are doubly welcome when they occur. EX. 35. Viola and 'Cello. The second movement, an Allegretto ma non troppo, is in the very remote key of D major, the quaint and somewhat expectant little prelude of four bars — EX. 36. 'Cello Solo. leading to a long melody on the first violin, which seems to shun the idea of coming to a finish, the expected cadence being interrupted twice in succession before being allowed to make its definite appearance. The feeling of unrest thus fore- shadowed is clearly present in the ensuing passages, where the viola leads off a kind olfugata with a very chromatic subject. EX. 37. Viola. and later the 'cello develops the opening prelude, which at first seemed so little part of the scheme. Presently the principal melody returns, and this time resolutely refuses to come to a cadence at all, the various interruptions culminating in a return of the above chromatic subject, which is developed in a brilliant manner and leads to a mysterious Coda, which pauses upon a diminished seventh chord on B. Taking the 44 CHAMBER MUSIC cue from this, the Allegro assai, which constitutes the third movement of the work, starts off as follows : — EX. 38. Allegro assai vivace via sertoso. '-HIa This is far too serious to call a scherzo, though the con- struction is somewhat similar to that of those highly extended and developed scherzos which Beethoven had already begun to create. An alternative seotiSn comes to dispel this long continued unrest, and seems like a song arising out of deep religious contemplation, reminding one somewhat of Bach; and when the original subject makes its final appearance it is resolute and strong, as though health and strength and comfort had been vouchsafed at last. It is a marvellously planned movement of which no brief review can give a just appraisal. A very short, but deeply emotional prelude, almost suggesting Wagner in its yearning intensity— EX. 39. THE STRING QUARTET 45 leads to the Finale, the main subject of which is remarkable for its repeated phrases. This was so rare a device with Beethoven, and so usual a procedure with Mendelssohn and others of a later generation, that, taken by itself, the melody- seems to belong to another period altogether. EX. 40. Allegretto agitato. 1st ViOLlH, It is difficult to believe that such a typically Mendelssohnian melody could have been composed by Beethoven, but if we examine the texture of the movement as a whole we shall see no further resemblances. Indeed, when we find the phrases being split up and appearing as accompanying figures with all sorts of significant twistings and turnings, we shall be set wondering what might have been the result if some of the writers of the succeeding romantic period had possessed Beethoven's habit of thematic economy and his power of sustained insistence upon vital points. The Coda, at all events, is . pure unalloyed Beethoven. Beginning with an entirely new theme in an entirely new time-signature. EX. 41. Allegro, ^■^fz:it^^. Sempre p it possesses some of that breathless energy which made the conclusion of the third Easoumowsky quartet so exciting and so dazzling. It is certainly a passage that lives vividly in one's memory, and is bracing to recall. This somewhat prolonged investigation of the first eleven quartets of Beethoven has been undertaken in the hope that 46 CHAMBER MUSIC an appreciative survey of such great progress and attainment in quartet-writing may be more helpful and stimulating to the student than the plain statement of abstract principles which a teacher or author might easily derive from their study. The wonderful posthumous quartets will be considered at the end of the next chapter, as they occupy a position by them- selves, and are not so much a development of what had gone before as a new declaration of faith, and they speak a language hitherto unspoken, and practically never spoken again since Beethoven's death. The methods of their com- position will, therefore, be best discussed in company with certain exceptional effects in quartet-writing which might be considered available under some occasional or conceivable conditions. But first an effort will be made to give advice upon every form of writing which may be considered ordinarily legitimate for four stringed instruments, from the easy, flowing elegances of early days to the more subtle nuances and com- plexities which prevail at the present time. With all the manifold changes of feeling and fashion there are certain principles which stand firm ; there are certain weaknesses which must ever be deplorable ; and there is a sure standard of clean, honest, and efifective workmanship which may always be steadily and worthily sought. These principles, weaknesses, and technical axioms are exemplified in modern music, as well as in the works of the classic masters, and quotations may, therefore, be freely drawn from all writers of experience irrespective of their school or period. The chapter now com- pleted will have fulfilled its mission if it has duly impressed upon the student the need for purity and dignity in his themes, and if the extracts given from Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven have helped him to appreciate the really expansive capabilities of four stringed instruments. CHAPTER III. THE STRING QUARTET. II. Resources and Effects. In the previous chapter little more was attempted fhan a brief survey of certain general principles of quartet- writing suggested by the achievements of Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven in his earlier and middle periods. One is tempted to say that Beethoven and Schubert carried the treatment of the String Quartet to its highest point of perfection. But while it is unsafe to make a statement which is in itself a prophecy of either decadence or stagnation, there is little doubt that from a purely technical aspect these two masters discovered the extent of the possibilities of this combination, whilst at the same time recognising its limitations as few composers follow- ing afterwards have found themselves able to do. The wisdom of Beethoven and Schubert has been in no way so surely proved as in the compositions of their successors in which those limitations have been grievously overstepped. This is, perhaps, neither regrettable nor discouraging. Having been shown how far we may go, and how far we may not go, we may settle down to work with a greater assurance of success. If we are not satisfied with our quartet of strings, we may try a septet of saxophones, and settle for ourselves, and those that follow us, the maximum of audacity that may be obtained, legitimately, from this new medium. It is likely, however, that the more we study the question the more assured we shall feel that the possibilities of developing our 48 CHAMBER MUSIC style and employing the most modern idioms are by no means exhausted, even within the seemingly narrow boundary of four stringed instruments. The important point is that they should still be recognised as four stringed instruments, and this is where the wisdom of Beethoven or Schubert may help us to see more clearly. It would be extremely foolish to assert that either Beethoven or Schubert discovered every legitimate effect of which the String Quartet is capable. The development of modern musical thought has made many hitherto undreamed-of devices possible. Much of that develop- ment has tended towards greater complexity of construction, it is true, and extreme complexity and polyphonic massiveness are only in a limited degree suitable in quartet-writing. The great classical traditions are doubtless slowly passing away, and our music, of necessity, in a strenuous and complex age, reflects the spirit of the life we live. But there have been other sides to modem development, many of which make no strain upon a slender medium. The writers of the newer > French school, for example, have indulged in subtleties of rhythm which are, from their very delicacy of conception, more suited to such a combination as the String Quartet than to a more cumbersome machinery. Even if the older ideals of form may seem inevitably to cling around a medium of expression which is closely bound up with all that is best in the classical traditions, there is, from a logical point of view, no real barrier to the free expression of modern musical utterance in this medium. In our own country ^n enthusiastic amateur musician has, through generous encouragement, already proved that a one-movement " Phantasy '' may be made the vehicle for many novel modes of expression without either exceeding the boundaries of Chamber Music or too slavishly following in the wake of tradition. On the other hand we may point with pride to at least one real String Quartet by a living Englishman^ in which the constructive principles of each movement are ' Ralph Vaughan- Williams, who in his Quartet in 6 minor even adopts the old-fashioned "Minuet and Trio" and " Eondo Capriooioso" for headings to two of the movements. THE STRING QUARTET 49 practically identical with those of Mozart or Beethoven, whilst the ideas and their treatment are fully charged with the most modern independence and elusiveness of sentiment. It wUl be well, therefore, to approach the study of 'the special features and difficulties of quartet-writing without prejudice and with an open mind, and to recognise that there may be many methods of doing the same thing, all of which may be good and legitimate in their several ways. With this always in view, an attempt will be made to give examples from the most modern works as well as from the classics, both in respect of what may be accepted as suitable, and of what should be shunned as unsuitable and outside the boundaries that good taste and a true appreciation of the essence of Chamber Music have set up. It will be remembered that at the beginning of the previous chapter, whilst laying stress upon the separate individuality of the four instruments, the author had occasion to allude to the possibility of preserving an almost perfect uniformity of tone throughout the quartet. Amongst the quotations given from the Beethoven quartets' one at least (page 39) illustrated this point in a very clear manner, by showing how a composer might allow an arpeggio passage to pass on, as it were, from one instrument to another. This same quality of uniformity will also enable a composer to make a specially effective use of unison passages," where one consistent colour, both in attacking and sustaining the notes, is of great value. There is a quartet of Cherubini, in E flat, in which the subject of the last move- ment leads off in the following spirited fashion : — EX. 42. Allegro assai. The first and second violins and viola play in unison, and the 'cello in the . octave below, with a very strong efiect which no double-notes or chords would intensify. D so CHAMBER MUSIC Perhaps the finest example of such treatment in all quartet music is to be found in the posthumous Quartet in D minor of Schubert, where the theme of the Finale continues in almost unbroken unison for sixteen bars. EX. 43. Fnsto. (2nd VroMN unison, Viola awd *Cello 8vc lower.l The effect of this, as no one who knows it will need to be told, is magical. But it is an exceptional case. Generally speaking, a prolonged unison passage is inclined to sound, if not exactly cheap, either rather empty of invention or orchestral in character. In Beethoven and Mozart unison passages for all four instruments are very rare, and almost always of quite brief duration. It may, perhaps, be said that these remarks apply to all kinds of musical combinations, and that the warn- ing given is one of far wider application. This is no doubt true, but the fact remains that a quartet is about the most unsuitable medium through which to present a long passage solely mono-melodic iii character, and that -what might be quite acceptable and forceful, for twenty bars in an orchestral piece may sound very threadbare and poor when played for half a dozen bars by four fiddles. A very much more important method of writing, rendered effective by reason of this exact balance and satisfactory blend of the four instruments, is what may be conveniently called the Contrapuntal style. The purely contrapuntal treatment of themes was much indulged in by some of the earlier quartet writers. The following example from Cherubini's Quartet in E flat is typical of this method. The music is old-fashioned in character, but very clearly shows the strong effectiveness of such devices given forth in a forceful and transparent manner. THE STRING QUARTET 51 EX. 44. Allegro assat. Mi 5^=^ =p==f; SS^iti In writing such as this, which is so clear in design, it is highly necessary to exercise great care to avoid the clashing or " hitting " of notes which do not harmonise with one another. Even in the above example there is a place where the effect is not likely to be quite good, the A flat against the G at the end of the fourth bar rather disturbing the purity of the passage. Of course this is a quick movement, and much may be written in an Allegro assai of this nature that would not pass muster in an Adagio. If, indeed, this example were played at a slow pace, the moment of contact alluded to above would serve as an excellent instance of a species of careless workmanship that is wholly inadmissible in a quartet. This vigorous style of imitative writing was very much affected by Cherubini, and, as we know, Beethoven had a very great admiration for the works of his contemporary, more than 52 CHAMBER MUSIC once speaking of him as the greatest musician of that age. It is not, therefore, surprising to find that Beethoven adopts this highly contrapuntal style in some of his quartets, even constructing whole movements upon a plan which unites the attributes of binary and fugal forms, laying stress upon the special contrapuntal features which characterise the latter mode of development. Perhaps his most successful essay in this direction is the Finale of the third Easoumowsky quartet (already mentioned), in which the vigour of the opening subject is maintained throughout the whole of what is prac- tically a moto perpetuo with astonishing inventive resource. The subject is a very long one, and the viola is entrusted with' its initial presentation : — EX. 45. This subject is answered a fifth higher by the second violin; and the other parts enter in turn in the manner of a strict fugue. But there are differences. When the fourth entry begins, the first and second violins play the subject in octaves, the viola and 'cello playing the counter-subject in octaves against them, and this effective two-part treatment continues for some time, leading to a climax with strong chords and an absence of all contrapuntal pretensions. Moreover, there are many places where the colouring is very marked, and where the effect is certainly not entirely due either to uniformity of tone or the mere ingenuity of the counterpoint (see page 98). At the same time the main design is contrapuntal, and these varieties of treatment serve, as all such varieties should serve, to throw into strong relief the passages in which the skilful interweaving of running melodies is the chief and most arrest- ing quality. In the last quartets of Beethoven we again find a leaning towards the contrapuntal manner. But in such a THE STRING QUARTET 53 movement as that from which the following bars are taken, the music is so spiritual that one hesitates to call it by such an lagly word. This is the opening of the great Quartet in C sharp minor, Op. 131, and one may linger long in contemplation of its serene beauty and perfection. EX. 46. Adagio, ma non iroppo e molto espressivo. >/ P ^^^ ^^^ ^^=^^ =^^^ 5Fl£gfr s/: dim. p ^^ ?^^ ^^ ^=^ ^^ ^ I -F ^^ »/. ■id^rj: sFir^ 54 CHAMBER MUSIC Widely differing in character from the previous extracts, the following four bars from Tschaikowsky's first quartet, in D major, Op. 11, are exceedingly interesting, and show a very masterly command over the resources of this kind of writing in modern music. EX. 47. The above part-writing will bear the closest inspection. It is pure quartet music, being both well-designed and sensitive. The most notable quartet writers of recent times, however, seem almost to have lost the feeling for this particular form of writing, and few examples as good as the above, from that point of view, could be given from the works of present-day musicians. No doubt there are reasons for the change of style, for modem ideas seem to demand more attention to colour and THE STRING QUARTET S5 emphasis than a level flow of melodies running side by side can be made to express. Without unduly dwelling upon this point one may say, in passing, — by way of warning— that passages of an extremely complex contrapuntal character should nowadays seldom be very prolonged. An over-indulgence in this kind of writing makes many of the older quartets (by Cherubini, Dittersdorf, and other^ segm rather ^ull ^ftud^ej^^L antic, and several modern ones (by Bruclcner,*fieger, ando^ers) unduly forced and overcrowded with unnecessary complexities. It is quite possible, moreover, whilst combining one's melodic ideas and evenly distributing the interest, to accentuate at the same time the separate tone-character of the instruments, and thus heighten the effect. In Schumann's Quartet in A minor. Op. 41, No. 1, there is a passage of a fugal nature which begins on the viola and is answered by the 'cello : — EX. 48. Viola. Here it should be noted that the " subject " is asserted with the full broad tone of the lower strings of the viola, whilst the " answer " is allotted to the A string of the 'cello. If the composer had done the obvious thing — by giving the notes, just as they stand above, first to the 'cello and then to the viola — the effect would have been totally different, and the whole passage would have sounded weaker and more ordinary, having completely lost its distinctive solo colouring. 56 CHAMBER MUSIC This brings us to a point where a further consideration of the separate individuality of the instruments alluded to in the last chapter may fittingly be attempted. The special characteristics of the violin as a solo instru- ment are so well known that it is not necessary to dwell upon its varied capabilities. It is of all instruments the most versatile, and at the same time the most commanding. The chief violinist of an orchestra is considered next in im- portance to the conductor, and even in the most perfectly organised quartet the chief authority and leadership must always be assigned to the player of the first violin part. Moreover, he will generally play the highest notes of the score and therefore his prominence is assured, not only with that vast concourse of ordinary listeners who attend to nothing else, but with the cultured few who, with all their under- standing, must still feel the natural supremacy of the most clearly evident outline in the design. Instances of the most varied employment of the first violin in h%h- and low melodic passages, in figuration, in sustained strength and vigorous rhythmic emphasis,- as well as in tripping delicacies and dainty elaborations, will be found in two-thirds of the musical examples which are scattered so . plentifully throughout these pages. It may be more profitable, therefore, to consider for a moment the claims of the second violinist, seeing that there is more danger of his undue neglect than of his companion's displacement. It will be well if the parts are frequently allowed to cross, the second violin having its fair share of the chief melodic interest, and also that rests be given in the top line which will enable the second-player sometimes to occupy the place of leader for the time being. In the examples given on pages 18, 60, 62, and 7V, it wiU be seen how weU this can be done. Such treatment not only adds to the variety of which the combination is capable, but it often gives a welcome prominence and freshness of effect to the first violin part when it re-enters. The second violin may also be given a prominent function if the composer employs it in passages which depend largely for their effect upon the consistent use of figuration. The THE STRING QUARTET 57 example from Schubert's Quartet in A minor on page 65 is a case in point; another, more assertive and more modern in character, may be found in the Scherzo of Stanford's Quartet in A minor. Op. 45, where the quaint figure EX, 49. Prestissimo. 2sD Violin. dominates the score for the greater part of the movement. The mysterious second violin passage from Tschaikowsky's E flat minor Quartet, Op. 3 0, which adds so much to the solemnity of the Andante funebre, may also be cited in this connection: — EX. 50. There is a deep import in this throbbing inner voice which gives the instrument a specially suitable function. All modern quartet writers have seized upon the opportuni- ties for emphasis and prominence which the peculiar timbre of the viola affords, in order to give additional colour and point to their music. The solo passages which open the quartets of Dvofdk in F and Smetana in E minor (both of which are quoted, to illustrate another point, on pages 71 and 72) are excellent examples of this ; and all who have heard Debussy's remarkable work will recall the passage which, preceded by four pizzicato chords, makes its appearance in the second movement : — EX. 51. Asses vife hien rythmi. S 58 CHAMBER MUSIC This very strongly marked and singular phrase forms a figuration of much point which dominates the greater part of the piece. The viola tone gives the utmost character to the little melody, and though the same phrase is afterwards allotted to the other instruments, and indeed appears in a transformed guise at the end of the whole quartet, one never quite loses the sense that this is essentially a tenor motif, and receives its every appearance instinctively feeling that it has reference to the peculiar colouring of the viola. Even more important is the part played hy the viola in the third movement of Brahms's Quartet in B flat. Op. 67. Here the instrument is given additional prominence from the fact that its three companions are muted throughout. In this instance also the upper notes, with their singularly appeal- ing quality — less hright than that of the violin — come more prominently into play: — EX. 52. Atjitaio {allegretto non troppa\ poco f espress. After twelve bars in this strain a kind of variant is intro- duced, the viola still predominating : — EX. 33. The movement being in Minuet form, one looks, perhaps, for contrast in the Trio section. But here again, though we find changes of key and figuration, the viola maintains its THE STRING QUARTET 59 supremacy, this time singing a song which, at the beginning, exhibits the richer tones of the low notes, effectively set forth to the pulsation of a gentle and most delicate rhythm. EX. 54. 'Cello, In the whole literature of Chamber Music one icould scarcely find a better example of the capabilities and range of the viola than in this single movement. Brahms invariably wrote lovingly for this instrument, giving it a melodic im- portance that few composers before him had considered suitable, finding, no doubt, in its tones a sympathetic exponent for those deeply solemn melodies by which he so constantly expressed the character of his musical impulses. A close study of the three quartets — in B flat, A minor, and C minor— of this master will unquestionably help towards a better under- standing of the scope and power of the middle " voice " in a String Quartet. For the interpretation of isolated melodic passages in the tenor compass the 'cello is generally superior to the viola by reason of the greater sweetness of its quality. The 'cello has unquestionably the power of becoming more vocal and articulate than any other stringed instrument. Indeed, in its excess of tone-sweetness lies the chief danger for those who would write for it, and it is certainly unwise to use the 'cello too continuously as a solo instrument in a quartet, lest the music should assume a sentimental complexion. One can scarcely conceive anything more horribly inartistic than a sentimental String Quartet— even a quartet in which there are 6o CHAMBER MUSIC occasional lapses into sentimental expression is rather difficult to accept. One might almost . advise the young composer to attend a recital of 'cello solos iu order to hear a surfeit of the kind of thing he most certainly ought not to write in Chamber Music, for 'cellists, like singers, are so frequently tempted to play what pleases the average public, in the exaggerated style that is called " expression," that they are apt to lose all sense of the dignity and nobility of their instrument, and seem to think that unless their part lies almost entirely on the A string they will not be able to exhibit their powers to advantage. The 'cellist who is a really good quartet-player, however, will be able to perceive some other aspects of the case, and will make no less effect from incisive and rhythmic passages than from those in which the appeal is more smoothly melodic. Some illustrations may perhaps be fittingly given here, in order to set forth two or three of the many possible moods in which the 'cello, as a separate entity, may make itself felt in quartet-music. The bright and busy Trio from the Minuet movement of Haydn's Quartet in G, Op. 54, No. 1, is an exceptionally good instance of the 'cello in a gracious, yet somewhat agile, mood. Moreover, it exhibits a due regard for the effectiveness of those lower strings which are so often neglected in solo writing. As the deeper tones are not by any means so easily made prominent, it will be observed with what wisdom Haydn, has confined the arrangement of the other parts to the simplest possible expression of delicate outlines which never obscure the riiain material. EX. 55 2kd VlOlIH. Viola. 'Cello. Allegretto. THE STBING QUARTET 6i ^=mi^ ^'?=i!=?= One of the greatest problems that the beginner has to encounter in using the 'cello for solo passages in a quartet is the difficulty of providing a suitable and adequate bass. In a^ passage such as the above, where the bass itself is the solo, this does not, of course, present itself ; but the 'cello will often be required to play melodies which are not only at a higher pitdh but which require a bass part to support them. The fact that the viola can play no note lower than the C on the second space in the bass clef, makes this a matter which demands considerable skill and ingenuity. A composer will often be guided by such practical considerations in his choice of keys for passages of this kind. At the beginning of Haydn's Quartet in C (Op. 20, No. 2) we find' this well exemplified. The 'cello melody has ample support from the viola tones here used, but had the key of the movement been B flat instead of C such a distribution of parts would manifestly have been impossible. We may note also that the composer has contrived to keep the second violin below the solo for the most part, but had this been arranged otherwise it is not likely that the distinctive and strong tones of the 'cello, on its A string, would have been obscured by the low notes of a violin, for at the fourth and fifth bars, where the parts do momentarily cross, no cliange of effect is noticeable. If, however, the viola had at any point played at a higher pitch than the 'cello, the effect of a consistently moving bass-support would have been lost altogether. 62 CHAMBER MUSIC EX. 56. 2nd Vioun. Viola. 'Cello, JUotUrato. If a violoncello melody is pitched very high, the difficulty of providing both bass and accompaniment is naturally lessened. In the following quotation from Stanford's Quartet in G, Op. 44 (the first few bars of the second subject of the first movement), a great deal more freedom is allowed to the viola in its task of providing the basis of the design. EX. 57. THE STRING QUARTET 63 This example is interesting from other points of view also. We see here the great value of rests consistently used in order to give greater clearness and prominence to the melody at the beginning of each bar. We may also note that the subordinate figures with which the two violins fill in the harmony, although in no way obscuring either the prominence of the chief melody or the clear and direct flow of the viola bass, possess, nevertheless, a separate rhythmic design of which one is plainly and continuously conscious. This brings us to the brink of a very large subject, of which it will not be possible to speak exhaustively within the limits of a short treatise, although something must be attempted. The question of the proper employment of melody and accompaniment in quartet- writing is, indeed, a highly important one. A composer like Schubert, for instance, depended very largely in all his music upon the effect of the song-like melodies which he composed so fluently, and the essence of their effec- tiveness lies largely in their transparent simplicity, unobscured by decoration or undue prominence of rhythmic and harmonic elaboration. Yet he wrote some of the most beautiful String Quartets in, existence, and did not desert his lyric style in pro- ducing them. It is impossible to lay down any definite rules as to what is and what is not admissible in the nature of accompani- ment in a quartet. In general, however, it may be said that nothing sounds more false or empty in Chamber Music than the constant use of bustling figures, without melodic curves, to 64 CHAMBER MUSIC do duty as a background to the subject-matter. Such devices as tremolos, the " Alberti bass " : — and groupings of a similar nature (having, as Mr. W. H. Hadow says, " a factitious air of being busy ") are totally un- suitable in work of this sort, and it may be said, generally speaking, that if figuration be employed in a quartet it should have some separate melodic interest of its own. In the quartets of Haydn and Mozart, and even of Beethoven, such devices may occasionally be found, but surprisingly seldom are they without some saving grace of punctuation, phrasing, or accentuation, which lifts them out of the common rut and gives them a kind of purposeful siguifieance, even where their function is obviously mere accompaniment and nothing else. Besides.music has undoubtedly advanced since these days in some respects, and one of these respects is the attitude of musicians towards the subordinate portions of their musical structure. Beyond question the use of bare accompaniment, naked and unashamed, in music of a modern character is to be deprecated. In Chamber Music there is no justification for it whatever. A few illustrations from the works of great quartet writers will perhaps prove helpful, by showing various interesting devices which have been utilised by them for enhancing the beauty of their purely melodic strains. The following three bars from one of the later quartets of Haydn (the Quartet in B minor. Op. 64, No. 2) will prove that even this early master had a keen sense of the value of interesting and consistent figuration : — EX. 58. THE STRING QUARTET 65 Here the harmonies are of the simplest possible character, but each of the three instruments accompanying the solo passage of the first violin has a distinct rhythmic figure of its own, and the three parts are blended together with the happiest effect. Such examples of the employment of regular accompanying figures are, however, comparatively rare in Haydn and Mozart, and even in Beethoven, whose quartet music was generally too closely interwoven in thematic texture to admit the use of much subordinate accompaniment. If we turn to the scores of Schubert, we shall find some of the happiest instances of simply, yet pointedly, accompanied melodies which it is possible to discover in all music. There is surely no finer example than the well-known opening of the Quartet in A minor. Op. 29, too familiar to quote, perhaps, were it not that one cannot recall too often the beauty of its limpid flow. EX. 59. Allegro mn nnn troppn. 1st Violin, (,(> CHAMBER MUSIC No one who has heard this quartet will need to be told that the little pianissimo figure of a dotted minim and four semiquavers, so unobtrusively murmured by the viola and 'cello at the beginning, becomes enormously important in the scheme of the movement, being heard sometimes as a throbbing inner-part, and sometimes in the form of full four-part chords. It is the perfection of accompaniment if, as here, the accom- paniment itself is of importance as thematic material. A quartet is, as it were, so choice a thing that no shred or crumb of it should be wasted, and to allow even a few bars of padding or 'fiUing-in' to find a place in it is to spoil the delicacy of the whole design, to lessen one's sense of its possible perfection. .> Again, in the almost equally well-known posthumous Quartet in D minor we have excellent examples of the same art. Let us take, for instance, the third Variation upon the " Death and the Maiden " theme, with its subtle blending of rhythms sup- porting a tenor melody sung by the 'cello. EX. 60, ATidante con moio. THE STRING QUARTET 67 The listener is not conscious of any complexity in the accompaniment here. It is more elaborate on paper than in sound. The distinctive characteristics of each part are main- tained with unbroken fluency throughout the entire Variation, and there is at no point any sense of effort to maintain the easy flow of the music. In order to develop the power of inventing interesting note- designs and figurations, which is nowadays in Chamber Music so needful an accomplishment, the student is strongly recom- mended to write quartet movements in Variation form (in which a mastery of such devices is absolutely necessary to success) and to study the works of Schubert, Brahms, Dvorak, and some of the modern Eussian writers — notably Tschaikow- sky, Borodin, and Tanieff. The works of all these composers are full of rhythmic life and energy, and, whilst exhibiting a strong sense of colour, are yet generally safe models as Chamber Music. In Brahms especially we shall find absolute purity of style combined with the most perfect workmanship, and the happiest instances of his mastery of this particular art are to be found in his quartets. Already, on page 59, an example has been given of his use of the viola for solo passages, and that example is an equally good illustration of his treatment of a gracefully phrased accompanying figure. In the following extract it is the first violin that sings, and the background provided by the other instruments is quite exceptionally delicate and interesting. 68 CHAMBER MUSIC EX. 61. AUegretlo {poco piu animato). p arco. These six bars, which are quoted from the 3rd movement of Brahms's Quartet in C minor, Op. 51, No. 1, give an instance of a charming use of pizzicato chords as accompaniment, and also illustrate another special effect not before mentioned. The peculiar notation of the second violin part may need some explanation to those who are not string players. The manner of interpretation is this. The notes marked are played on the open A string, whilst the others (with stems turned upwards) are played on the stopped D string. This enables the passage to be bowed, and gives a specially smooth effect which could not otherwise be obtained by repeated notes. When in the course of the movement the note is changed from A to G, Brahms does not repeat the G, and thus rob the passage of its smoothness, but changes the motes thus — ■ THE STRING QUARTET 69 EX. 62. which more nearly approximates to the original sound than would the repetition of notes on the same string. A similar effect may he obtained, of course, by the crossing of two parts to give a smooth repetition of chords — VlOLIH. Viola. but this is a more familiar device which may be noted in the works of many modern writers, and is in dangerous proximity to a well-worn orchestral formula. In the following beautiful example of quartet- writing, also from Brahms (Quartet in A minor. Op. 5 1 , No. 2 — Pinale), we shall find much to claim our attention in the brief space of seven bars. Allegro non assai, EX. 63. p esyres sjvo. 70 CHAMBER MUSIC Here again the first violin has the chief melodic material, but with it the 'cello is employed to give rich support to the theme — somewhat in the nature of an obbligato to a song. We may note, also, how charming are the little crossing figures allotted to the second violin and viola, and how the choice of this key for the melody makes it possible for even the former instrument to play the bass part. The whole passage is a perfect model alike in its tenderness and expressive beauty, and in the felicitous curvature of the design with which it is adorned. The Quartet in F major. Op. 96, by DvoMk, one of the most successful chamber works of modern days, may be studied with great profit, especially for its mastery of rhythmic resource.^ The melody with which the first movement opens is allotted to the viola, and is essentially a solo or " character " passage. It is accompanied by a waving semiquaver figure on the violins, and a held low note {pp) on the 'cello. This was not a new effect. An equally emphatic viola subject treated in an exactly similar way opens the famous quartet (" Aus Meinem Leben ") by Dvordk's teacher, Smetana, which was written several years earlier. There is no doubt that the pupil was indebted to the master for his method, but there is also no doubt that the pupil had found for himself a more excellent way of composing a string quartet. A comparison of the opening of these two works is so extremely interesting and instructive to the student that the first few bars of each are here printed on successive pages. * This work is often described, even on concert programmes, as " The Nigger Quartet. " Like the same composer's symphony " From the New World," it is generally believed to be founded upon traditional tunes of the African races settled in America. The author has excellent authority for stating that, so far from this being the case, not a single Negro melody is employed either in the quartet or the symphony. According to Mr. H. E. Krehbiel, who knew the composer well, Dvorak merely "adopted the idiom of slave song and its spirit, and embodied them in melodies of his own creation, for the purpose of showing American composers that they had a body of true folk-song in their ovin country which might be utilised in building up a national school." THE STRING QUARTET 71 EX. 64. SMETANA, QUARTET IN E MINOR. Allegro vim appassionato, sff ■ Viola, 'Cello. t^—>\ r^-- sf espress. 5/ gg^ 1 J 1- - -ft. -ts 1 - l» m-" n* r r - r ■m=== -\ C—C — uU-j •' '^ ^^tr X — pU-ic 1^ CHAMBER MUSIC EX. 65. dvora'k, quahtet in r, op. Allegro ma non troppo* 1st Violih. Jkd Viouh. Viola. 'Cello. THE STRING QUARTET 73 We have in the first few bars of each the same pianissimo movement in sixths by the two violins, giving the key chord ; the same holding note on the 'cello, forming a pedal-bass ; a similar space of silence for the viola, and a similar trumpet-like entry at the end of the rest. But here the similarity ends. Dvordk's viola theme is short and concise and quite suitable to the medium ; the accompanying semiquavers change their position after two bars, and a little later the first violin makes a pretty little bird-like swoop before taking up the viola melody and carrying it aloft. The very long dramatic tune of Smetana and the continued waving figure, almost unbroken for dozens of bars, are distinctly orchestral in feeling and much less satis- factory in a chamber work. Let us also compare the treatment of the 'cello part. In Smetana we find merely a long monotonous pedal bass without any rhythmical importance whatever. In Dvorak, after a few bars of the movement, the 'cello part becomes broken up into pizzicato, while the first violin has the melody. After ten bars we have such characteristic quartet-writing as the following : — EX. 66. In justice to Smetana, however, and lest the student should derive a contrary impression from that intended by the author in instituting the foregoing comparisons, it should be said that the " Aus Meinem Leben " quartet is avowedly an experiment in dramatic programme-music in the form of a chamber work. Thus, while we condemn the choice of medium, it must in all fairness be conceded that some striking effects are obtained which may profit us (as they also most evidently 74 CHAMBER MUSIC profited Dvorak), and that on other pages of the same composi- tion there are some refreshing instances of novel invention, the structure being quite legitimate, and the feeling not at all orchestral. EX. 67. Allegro vivo. p dolciss. mn espress. P — I 1 : , 1 m-^-J — ' — ' "N ^ =1= -sl — 1 ar: =- m-v. J 1 ^ _F — *L -^^^^^ ^^^=-^ ^-^ s^ ^i- J ^ r J ^— -J^ ,J J ^ ?=^-^ ' The excellences embodied in this quotation will be readily and quickly seen. Let us note the effectiveness of the melody with its quiet counter-subject on the second violin, the delicate grace of the consistent viola figure, and the pretty rhythm entrusted to the 'cello. "We shall no longer doubt that Smetana under- stood his art well enough to hand on to his more famous pupil some stimulating methods and principles worthy of close study and emulation. In this connection it may not be amiss to quote a few more bars from the Quartet in F of Dvorak, showing to what a high stage of perfection this combination of melody and rhythmic resource may be brought. The Scherzo of this work begins in a manner which arrests attention immediately. THE STRING QUARTET EX. 68. 75 MoUo mmce. 2llO ViOUN. 'Cello. This subject, stated, as will be seen, by second violin and 'cello in octaves, is treated in a remarkably spirited and independent way, the whole movement resembling a dialogue in which each participator has witty things to say. To begin with, the final three notes of each of these two-bar phrases (a and 6) are seized upon as separate figures, and then employed with great skill as part of an accompaniment for a melody on the E string of the first violin, as the following extract will show : — EX. 69. 1 a t I i 1 i ^ll. r F_PJ. E=^ m u u 76 CHAMBER MUSIC Before passing on to consider the claims of other matters, space must be allowed for three more illustrations, for it is necessary for us to observe the most modern and advanced methods of dealing with the question of melody and accom- paniment. The first two are illustrative of the great sonority and passionate sweep of sound that a fine craftsman can obtain from slender means. They are both from the same quartet, No. 1 in A, by the Eussian composer, Borodin. EX. 70. (Allegro.) Un poco meno tttosso. Appassionato e cantabile. mf eresc. This, with all its freedom, is pure quartet music, obviously conceived for the medium in which it is written. The THE STRING QUARTET 77 expressive and eagerly passionate strains of the first violin part are well supported by the pulsation of the second violin chords, whilst the passages crossing the strings for viola and 'cello (the groups of four in the former combined with^ the triplet groups of the latter) blend together with striking effect. Despite the mass of sound obtained there is a little sugges- tion of orchestral writing here, each individual part having a certain ' solo ' character. The following passage, of somewhat similar calibre, occurs in the same movement of the same quartet, and, being equally resourceful and fanciful, will repay careful analysis : — EX. 71. 78 CHAMBER MUSIC Each separate part is distinctive here, and piquancy is given to the accompaniment by the pizzicato of the 'cello and the little tremulous figure assigned to the viola. It may also be noted as a good instance of an important solo passage on the E string of the second violin. Thekind of writing that these two extracts display may be considered somewhat highly spiced; they are, of course, exceptional instances — not set forth as models of what every bar might contain, but as suggestions of what, at moments of climax or tension, may be actually attained to without losing the sense either of fitness or proportion. While the tendency of late in Germany and Eussia has been to increase the sonority of Chamber Music — and, one might say, to make it sound more than it is — in other quarters there have been signs that it may be looked upon as something most slender and delicate, a,nd entrusted only with the expres- sion of elusive and shadowy thoughts of which the orchestra might be too clumsy an interpreter. The following five bars from the Quartet in F by the French composer, Eavel, give an interesting example of a totally different melodic treatment : — * EX. 72. Allegro moderato, pp irks expr. THE STRING QUARTET 79 This possesses that precious quality known as ' atmosphere,' though the whole quartet, is disfigured, as in so many modern French works, by the irritating mannerism which takes the form of insisting on the repetition of each phrase rather than its continuity. It is tinted rather than coloured — we hear it, as it were, through gauze which obscures the outlines and makes us lose all sense of strength and stability. To those who would prefer their music to be a reflection of shadows rather than substance, a pale symbol rather than a bold actuality, the study of this quartet wUl be most valuable, for it is very beautiful and very finished, and is welded together with a most subtle and delicate touch. Before closing this chapter an attempt must be made to consider certain special effects which may be utilised to lend variety and colour to the quartet combination. Several musical examples on previous pages give, incidentally, passages marked pizzicato (abbreviated to pizz.), an Italian in- dication meaning, literally, 'pinched.' The 'pinching' or plucking of the strings may be employed in Chamber Music in a number of ways. Violinists generally play pizzicato passages with one finger, and it is necessary to remember that an extremely rapid succession of notes -played in this way is not practical. The quality of tone produced is a little thin, especially in high notes, which seldom sound satisfactory in pizzicato passages. The problem of balance has also to be faced — the 'cello pizzicato notes are of a richer quality than 8o CHAMBER MUSIC those of the violin or viola, and, having a greater resonance and some slight sustaining power, are not infrequently employed when the other three strings are playing areo, i.e. with the bow. Interesting examples of varying uses of these devices may be seen on pages 68, 77, 85 and 127. It remains to give some instances in which all of the strings together are instructed to play pizzicato. It will not be possible to find many such passages in the works of the earlier writers,^ but we have evidences in the very last quartets of Beethoven that he realised the special value of this effect. 1st 2nd AND Violins. Viola and 'Cello. EX. 73. Allegro. pp p2Be. ! J ! •;— nJ. J. A E£ ^^ The above is a quotation from the final Coda of that strangely capricious and fanciful Quartet in F major, Op. 135. The strings are plucked pianissiino, and it may be noted that Beethoven uses high notes on the 'cello rather than the lower more powerful and resonant tones. The pace is quick, and when the first violin in the next few bars plays crotchets in succession in its highest register, they are directed to be played arm, the other instruments continuing as before. 1 There is a good instance of pizzicato accompaniment in the Minuet of Mozart's Quartet in D minor (No. 32, Payne). The melody at first is given to the principal violin, and is afterwards shared by the viola in octaves. THE STRING QUARTET 8i EX. 74. ^^ :ft t= t^ e £ £ I I I — • 3t 4t The execution of such a passage pizzicato would be impossible, and, were it possible, the thin tinny sound of these high notes would sound quite trivial and absurd. In the quartet of Eavel, from which a quotation has recently been given, may be found a remarkably interesting experiment in rapid pizzicato writing, all four instruments being employed. The effect of the cross-accentuation and mingling of rhythms is very bizarre, . but must be accounted a decided success, the whole movement being a remarkable tour de force in the matter of sheer artistry and the management of well- contrived sur- prises. EX. 75. Assez vif, Trls ryihmf, f pizz. Another special effect deserving of notice, though its employ- ment is less frequent in Chamber Music than in orchestral writing, is that indicated by the words con sordim. Nearly every instrument can be rendered duUer in tone by the appli- cation of some form of ' mute ' partially to prevent the vibra- tions. The mutes placed upon stringed instruments produce a peculiar veiled quality which is extremely effective for certain definite purposes. The actual ' mute ' used by string players is a little clamp, somewhat resembling a comb in shape, made either of metal or wood. It is placed on the bridge of the F 82 CHAMBER MUSIC instrument, which it clasps tightly, effectually preventing it from imparting its vibrations to the sound-board, and very perceptibly affecting both the power and quality of the tone. It is generally believed that mutes are a modern invention. But although seldom employed until recent times, the score of a work as early as Purcell's Fairy Queen provides an example of the effective use of this now familiar device. It is seldom that mutes should be used for long at a stretch, as the effect they create bfeeomes wearisome if over-prolonged, and it must also be remembered that if they are to be attached to the instruments (or withdrawn) in the course of a movement, suffi- cient rests must be provided to allow the players to make the change. There is a general impression, especially with regard to the orchestra, that mutes are less effective on the violoncellos than upon the upper strings, but this is largely owing to the fact that violoncello players often use mutes which are not heavy enough to change the tone quality appreciably. At the same time there are occasions when the 'cello may, with excellent effect, be left linmuted whilst the upper strings play con sordini, especially when the 'cello is playing pizzicato, as the following extract will show. It is part of the Quartet in D minor by Max Eeger (Op. 74), and, besides being an illustration of the point in question, is interesting by reason of the extreme modernity of the progressions, and as an example of the most recent treatment of the quartet-combination harmonically. EX. 76. Allegro agitato e mvace 7^ ps T^ -— ' con sordino. PP T =1 — r K" ^ SFr-e 9ti- con sordino. PP 1 . 1 t- 1^^' 1 z =l~~=i" "■=""-1 PP ^:^_^JL:i J_TJ W-w^ W—i^ L^=-^-=!d THE STRING QUARTET 83 pp tsm pp -m t^i-z =!>«-q— E=K^ — ^ ^ ^^~^"^~ - ^ ^B W molto. Mutes, producing as they do an impression of remoteness, are more generally used for slow movements in which a veiled and mystic tone is desired. One can recall no better instance of their apt employment than in the exquisite Andante canta- bile from Tschaikowsky's Quartet in D major (Op. 11), in which the tenderly wistful harmonies are rendered far more telling by means of this artificial aid. EX. 77. Andtmte canlabile. 84 CHAMBER MUSIC The same movement, in which the mutes are used in all parts from first bar to last, also contains striking instances of a hasso ostinato played pizzicato by the 'cello, and of plucked chords accompanying a warm-toned solo on the G string of the first violin. The application of mutes will often add a certain sylph- like delicacy to rapid passages requiring extremely dainty treatment. The following quotations from the Scherzo of C6sar Franck'a Quartet in D, almost unknown in this country, will be of interest in this connection : — EX, 78. Timce, THE STRING QUARTET 85 (Con sordino. semprepp ,^j,j0 ispresstvo. W^ y-»J-«^= Each of these extracts forms a capital example of the sordino judiciously applied, and, since the score of the work from which they are taken is apparently still unpuhlished, may prove especially valuable to the student. The feathery lightness of the opening — in which a magical effect is gained by constantly 86 CHAMBER MUSIC recurring bars of silence — is well followed by the busily accom- panied expressive melody, where the whole treatment has a certain sinuous fascination. A rare effect, and at times a very striking one, is produced by the employment of muted strings for forcible music, as in the ensuing bars from the Quartet in E flat minor (Op. 30) of Tsohaikowsky. EX. 80. Andante funebre e dolorosa ma con moto. Con sordini. This device is perhaps less likely to be effective in a string quartet than in the orchestra, or upon a larger number of strings, where the parts can be doubled and strengthened. The harmonies of the above passage, however, are very poignant, and the tone-colouring employed undoubtedly intensifies their emotional import. Something must now be said about the use of harmonics in Chamber Music. To study the subject properly the student must have recourse to some scientific treatise dealing with acoustics. It must suffice here to say that harmonics are constituents of the main musical tone and are produced by the vibration of segments of a string, instead of the entire length. A siring not only vibrates as a whole, but also in each of its separate fractions, or aliquot parts, at the same time. When it vibrates in halves the note produced is an octave above the fundamental tohe, when in thirds a twelfth above, and so on. The only harmonics with which we need ordinarily become acquainted are the first five partial-tones of the series. These are as follows, taking the note G-, the fourth string ojE theviolin, as the fundamental tone : — P "whole string THE STRING QUARTET 87 the fractions below each crotchet indicating the divisions of the string required to produce the note written. A similar series of harmonics can, of course, be produced by any other string, taking the note of the whole open string as the fundamental tone, and building up the series in an exact transposition. It should be understood that all these notes are really produced (with varying strength) whenever the open string is played upon. It is only when we obtain them separately, without the fundamental tone, that the piping flageolet-like notes that we speak of as 'harmonics' are clearly heard. The method of obtaining these notes separately is by a light touch of the finger upon those points, or ' nodes,' at which the string is divided into segments. Thus if a string be lightly touched in the middle it will vibrate in halves, giving the octave above ; or if at the distance of a third (from either end) in thirds, giving the twelfth above, and so forth. In addition to these 'natural' harmonics, 'artificial' harmonics are also obtainable by stopping the string with the first or second finger, making thus a new fundamental tone, and touching the node with the fourth finger at the same time. By these two means harmonics, either natural or artificial, can be produced in all scales. The systems of indicating harmonics in notation are not quite settled or uniform. Some composers, by placing merely an over the note to be sounded, leave its method of produc- tion to the player. In the case of the octave above any open string this is, of course, always sufficient — the finger touching the string in the place where it would be stopped if there were no special indication. Violin. In the case of other natural harmonics it is often wise to indicate the part of the string touched by a minim, or by a note with a diamond-shaped head. The following short table indicates how this may be done, and the actual sounds produced 88 CHAMBER MUSIC are given above, in black notes. These actual notes are some- times, but not always, printed by composers in small type for safety's sake. NATURAL HARMONICS. Violin. ^ 8in m[^^m^m Viola. 'Cello. suIG These tables are given for completeness and for reference, and it must not be supposed that all the harmonics indicated are likely to be equally useful or effective. As a matter of actual practice the fractional division of the string into ^ is seldom used, for the resultant note can be more satisfactorily obtained in other ways. A composer who is not himself a player of a stringed instru- ment will do well to consult an executant when indulging in any extensive excursions into this domain. The stopped, or artificial, harmonics in particular need a thoroxigh understand- ing, and it would be very unsafe to write them indiscriminately for the violin, and even more perilous for the viola and 'cello — many positions being obviously impossible on a large finger- board that might be readily obtainable on a small one. For the most part harmonics are but rarely required in concerted music — partaking as they do, to some extent, of virtuosity — though their use in a few exceptional cases must be admitted to be THE STRING QUARTET 89 amply justified by the results. Generally speaking, a few isolated notes played in this manner by the first violin will be more effective and safe than chords in which all the instru- ments play harmonics. A noteworthy instance of the latter device may, however, be given here in order to show how such an effect may be planned and arranged. These are the closing bars of the first movement of Borodin's Quartet in' A, the originalities of which have already been drawn upon for illus- trating other points of exceptional usage. EX. 81. Flac. sul U sulA perdendosi. ■1=. -f=- e f PVt <^^— ^ =$: Pf_= ^^■, — — 1 ^ — Ml w ^ — ff-'B — "^g:' _0 ■:^-^ _!> vn >- =CE ^dL.V ^ 1 — 1 to-' ^^ ^x-^ — ^f=^ — 1 \ — tttttf-*— — St3 rw fc^# j — -f —r\~. ■fz. -Xs= -^ p~ ^^-^^ ''- 90 CHAMBER MUSIC The direction ' Flag.' is an abbreviated form of the word Flageolet, harmonics always being known by that name m France and Italy. The illustration will be useful to the student if he will dis- cover for himself, from the notation here given, the method by which each harmonic is produced, and at the same time try to realise the sound of the final chord at the pitch indicated. An effect allied to that under discussion may be made in another way. Harmonics are in reality not only laid bare, so to speak, by this one method of a slight pressure of the fingers on the strings, but may also arise if the player advances the bow from its usual position to a place in very close proximity to the bridge. The sound thus produced is seldom safely attainable on anything but an old and very resonant instru- ment, and is indicated by the direction sul ponticello. No clearly defined overtones are heard, but the vibration of the string is partially stopped, and the fundamental note rendered less strong, a singular ' hissing ' quality being the result. Playing sul ponticello should only be required by a composer for alto- gether exceptional purposes. The first known instance of its use in a quartet is in the great, posthumous work in C sharp minor by Beethoven (Op. 131), where all four instruments EX. 82. Preslo. pp Sul ponticello. m _i_ '^ 'm. -m -Jit. :t t= t= -^ PP Sul pofdiceVo. ^^^ -M^-e-—m- ^-te pp Sul ponticello, ■k • .*. M. S. * « ^■ Jt 4L -! 1 1 1- ■r 0- -J!=m * pp Sul poniicello. m. .«. .m. -m -I 1 — I — I— -^-^f^f^ Jl-fLjC L ' Sounds an octave lower than written. Many of the older composers used the treble clef for the 'cello in this way instead of employing the tenor clef. Nowadays the treble clef is only utilised for extremely high passages, when it invariably indicates the actual pitch required. THE STRING QUARTET 91 ^x-^-^-^= :?: i- e # n 1 1 ; — f ^f f pi 1 i 1 — 1 =*-(-=,=- -m f. f. r- ■ r r '- ra-i — 1 — 1 — ■■ ■■ i— — i 1 ! 1 HSJ-S-? ! 1 ■■ : 1 f f f f r ■ '- ' — f f - f f f f f 1^ y 1 play the constantly recurring theme of the Presto in this manner towards the end of the movement. But this is a very brief escapade occurring in the course of an extremely fantastic and capricious composition. In the following extract from Grieg's Quartet (Op. 27), we see how unsuitable such a device may become. The tremolando treatment, always dangerous in Chamber Music, only serves to accentuate the inappropriateness of the method. EX. 83. Allegro wolto ed agUato. pp Siil ponticellii. leTAND2HD ViOLIKS. Viola. 'Cello. ^JL-jT^g ^fei — Sul poniicello. Sul poniicetlo. pp ~ ■^ -'''' J J J =p=p= E^EE dolce. -^P^^ dolce. ^^^ STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 191 The student may be warned that to give the two upper parts to the strings (in fourths) and the lowest to the piano, in such a passage, would be extremely ignorant workmanship, which no composer of judgment would dream of tolerating. In the last movement of this fine little work there are many interesting things to observe, and attention may be called to the rhythmic opening, with its gtrong chords for th e strings .and brilliant piano arpeggios, and to the manner in which the second half of the main theme is given by the piano, accompanied by rapid pianissimo repetitions for the violin (which have too much character to sound like mere accom- paniment) and soft sustained bass-notes for the 'cello. Prestissimo. EX. 1S4. Violin. 'Cello. PlASO. PP i ^^-^ J J J J^n^ J J^^^ m Mz i zj=dz 192 CHAMBER MUSIC The two trios, Op. 70, are perhaps the best models of all, especially with regard to contrapuntal writ ing^ which is now given more prominence than heretofore. EX. 183. Allegro vimce. p-JL lf1^f^-l ^^ TpTTn Vy.S.. r tF m M T P- m ^—^ — r~ I -1 m-^- — '-f-p- Piano. < F= — pp m^ -r "J ^E^=^= PP r ^ ^ ^^^E :^^ -d.— H^ In the above quotation from the first of these trios (in D major) we find actual four-part writing which might almost be part of a string quartet, but it is contrived with such skill that the two string parts together, and the piano part by itself, are separable portions of the design. No less instructive is the arrangement adopted in the theme of the Allegro in the Trio in E flat (No. 2 of the same opus) which is quoted by Sir STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 193 Charles Stanford in his Musical Composition as a model piece of trio-construction, and will bear quoting again. EX. 186. Allegro ma non troppo. t ir VlOLIH. 'Cello. PlAHO. Here it will be seen that the pianocontributes at first^sugport; ing chord^s, and afterwards a middle voice, but the string parts have agaiii a separate, existence, throughout,.and do not depend upon these a,dditipns for their intelligent exposition an d appe al. Beethoven's famous Trio in Bflat, Op. 97, is such a stupen- dously great composition that one might devote a separate chapter to a review of its beauties were it the function of this volume to deal with Chamber Music entirely from an sesthetic point of view. The first movement is spacious and most digni- fied, reminding one in mood of the opening Allegro in the F major Easoumowsky Quartet ; the Scherzo is a remarkable specimen of Beethoven's concentration and decision; and the Andante is a king among slow movements, having a solemn theme which must ever rank with the finest inspirations in music. In his treatment of the instruments (except perhaps in the Scherzo) Beethoven indulges in greater fulness a,nd sonority than before, Thejiano seldom pkys in thirL_jingb lines, but_ha£__iarge handfuls of chords_,aad.„.warm arpeg gio figures, and, in order to preserve the balance, the strings are frequently allotted prolonged passages, of doubl.e notes. It is ' ' ' N 194 CHAMBER MUSIC almost inevitable that this gain in force and strength should be achieved at the expense of some loss of that intimate con- versational charm which is so valuable a characteristic in Chamber Music. And thus it is that the Trio i n B flat, h avfflg ideas large enough for_a^Symphony with_only threeunatrunients to .interpret them, seems _sonietimesJ}0 b3iEaLou.-t-0£jts_frame. The two trios of Schubert suffer to a certain extent in the same way. The first, in B flat, is, however, well worthy of study, and has some original and delightful features. The bold and vigorous initial subject is splendidly effective : — Allegro moieraio. f EX. 187. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 195 Interesting developments follow, many of which are in the true trio style, and clearly defined. EX. 188. PP ^ m ^^ PP b^ jT^ ^ K ^ 4 J" ^ The slow movement, too, is beautiful, and one may note that the 'c ello play s in its higher registe r througho u t most of this Rp.p.t,imTj;^very uncommon feature in the trios, of Schubert's time,^,The Finale, after the somewhat Mozartian flavour of its opening, has some episodes irresistibly characteristic of Schubert, including a section in Dflat in which a persistent 196 CHAMBER MUSIC and somewhat trumpet-like theme is set forth with much point and resource. It is like a gay procession in the distance, and affords an excellent example of suggestion in Chamber Music which never trespasses upon the preserves of realism. i =F^^ - f ff'^ % M Mf if'^ ^^-^r^ The second Trio, in E flat, has some noteworthy qualities and one fine movement — a Scherzo in which the piano and string s play in Canon. But the_ other movements are overcrowded wittraccompaniments for the violin and 'cello in chords, such as this : — STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 197 EX. 190. Violin 'Cello. whieb. are poor devices at best; and the Finale has subject- matter too much akin to the Lancers to make a very sincere impression nowadays. It may now be more profitable to consider the work of some later composers, whose treatment of the same combination differs considerably from that adopted by Beethoven and Schu- bert, and will, perhaps, afford examples more applicable to the student's present-day needs. The two trios of Mendelssohn, in D minor and C minor, after enjoying enormous popularity for many years, are now very seldom heard. The subject-matter in them is mostly of a smooth and pleasant, if somewhat sentimental,- character ; the piajio padu-H bnlliant. and facile, and the string writing easily effective without attempting anything in the least adventurous. As in_other c hamber works by the same copaposer. the g^erzos ^^_^'ll§Jfi9Xe3[Bfin-ts--wMch_afford the most striking aiidjnstaic- tiye Jeatures. That of the Trio in C minor (Op. 66) is a particularly admirable instance of dainty and well-balanced writing. EX. 191. MoUo allegro qiuisi presto, pp leggiero. VioLUf. 'Cello. PlAHO. fe^ ^um^^.^ ^ pp leggiero. 198 CHAMBER MUSIC The saltato, or light and gently-rebounding, bowing has here a most delicate effect, and the promise of the opening is well fulfilled, the piano assisting, but never intrusively, though its presence is always appreciably felt. Por romance and warmth of colour there is more to com- mend in the trios of Schumann. Of these the best-known, and perhaps the most highly meritorious, is that in D minor, Op. 63. As music it is finer than as an example of trio-writing. Much- ^ the work sfl^rg, fro m «the_ fadL-that-Ahe-pia-p" <^on constantly doubles t he string parts . The outlines go too much togeffierlnstead"orin contrary ways, and the violin and 'cello frequently merely reinforce the top and bottom notes of the piano part. There is, however, a good deal of independence in the Scherzo which has a splendid main idea. EX. 192. Zebliafi, doch nickt zu rasch, f sf P STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 199 Nothing could be better than the vigorous disposition of the instruments here shown, or the way in which the _ strings an d pia^o, dependiBg_upon each other, ars.jioxetailfid-and^-shaxe the, interest. \xililLahaQluia. equality ^Limpiaiiaiiae. The middle section of the movement is in decided contrast, but, with its smooth risings and fallings and exceedingly homo geneous design, it is fully as efifeetive. EX. 193. io6 CHAMBER MUSIC p cr£s6. dim. Besides three trios in the ordinary form, Schumann wrote a set of Fantasiestiicke (Op. 88) for the same combination of instruments, which exhibits similar merits, and similar minor defects. The following brief extract from the "Humoreske," which forms one of the movements, illustrates at once the charm and the danger of constantly making the strings and piano exchange phrases having exactly the same melodic curvature and rhythmic force : — EX. 194. Violin. 'Cello. ; PlAHO. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 201 If the phrases in themselves were as well fitted for the strings as they are for the piano, this would be a perfect speci- men of trio-writing. As it is, one is often led to feel that with a little alteration large portions of these works would sound better if performed upon two pianos. As has been noted in the c ase o f. his string-quartets. Schumann too of ten -thous^ht in terms of the piano when writing for otherJnstruments,_and \ this defect_ sometimes creates a feeling of __awkwardness and | angularity in_perJaniiance^ the string-players seeming to be struggling to attain what is not quite within their province. Most of the composers who followed Schumann, however, have been less successful than he was in devising suitable methods of distributing the parts. The fact that the tuni ng of the 'cel lo is a twelfth^ lower than that of the violin (that they form, so to speak, the top an3~'BotEomr' of things) has led, in most modern trios, to a certain feeling that the combination is an imperfect one. Sometimes the composer seems to be making the best of a poor opportunity by disguising the diificulties that he has to face; more often still (as in the case of Tschaikowsky) he struggles for expansion and writes what may be regarded as an imitation of a work on a larger scale, treating the single violin and 'cello much in the same way that he would a mass of strings in ah orchestral piece. The one outstand ing compose r of trios in recent times, is Brahms, in whose three monumental examples we_are_3,ble to 202 CHAMBER MUSIC realise how perfectly the, combination of violia .aiid-^ellmyith a modern pian oforte can be or dere d_and controlled. These works, wTiich Have rightly served as models for more than a generation of composers, are influenced to some extent by the traditions and ideals of both classic and romantic writers, but Brahms, while standing in clear relationship to each of these schooirof thought, had a personality which existed. apart ,£com either, and its powerful impress is asserted in many passages, both forcible and tender, and in a certain aloofness (irritating to some) which has been characterised as " uncompromising." Few glimpses of this latter attitude are, however, to be found in the early Trio in B (Op. 8), in which traces of outside influences are continuously observable — there is more than one suggestion of Mendelssohn and Schumann, and the Scherzo, in pattern, somewhat recalls the second movement of the great Beethoven Trio in B flat. It is worthy of note that many years after its composition Brahms completely revised this work, and it was reissued by Simrock. This is the edition generally used for performance nowadays. A comparison between the two versions reveals a considerable number of changes, "and will be of interest to the student, who can now purchase the work, as originally planned, very cheaply in Augener's edition. Brahms's real personal maturity of grasp is to be seen, how- ever, in the second Trio, in C major (Op. 87), and attains its highest manifestation in the third Trio, in C minor (Op. 101). In these works we find not only noble themes and a musical conciseness scarcely hinted at in his Op. 8, but a distribuiiop of the ins trumental forces so apt and decisive that all sug- gestion ofmequaiity and unjust balance seems to melt away, and one feels that the imperfections so troublesome to others have proved, in his case, actual aids to inspiration. Just as Chopin, in the writing of piano solo music, seems to turn the very defects of the instrument to good account, so Brahms, in these two trios, seizes upon the embarrassing points of the combination and makes some of his most characteristic effects by their help. In the Trio, Op. 87, there are several striking passages STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 203 which owe their entire conception to the circizmstance that the violin and 'cello are far apart in pitch. In the following bars from the first movement, theJwo_strings_sustain_^_ge^ iiotes^ above_.ani. belo^w^jmd^the piano has th e chief matter in between i::T- ViOLIS. 'Cello. PlAHO. m pp w EX. 195. dim. W w In the Andante of the same work the strings are made to play the chief melody two octaves apart for a considerable space. This was not, of course, an entirely new idea, but it is doubtful if any melody has ever so inevitably fitted itself to such colouring, or found so striking and sincere an expression by this means. EX. 196. Andante con moto. f-0 204 CHAMBER MUSIC The magnificent Op. 101 yields so much that is profitable and stimulating to study that no apology will be needed for quoting somewhat extensively from its many distinctive pages. The fine rugged vigour of the opening is surely unsurpassed in the whole literature of trio music : — Allegro energico. f EX. 197. VlOUN. 'Cello. FlAHO. This eloquent utterance leads to developments which dis- close some new methods of trio-writing, and accentuate and even increase the splendid qualities which the rhythmic shape of the subject reveals. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 205 EX. 198. Still forte, but with a kind of deep and strong tenderness in place of the fierce passion of the opening, we reach the second subject, in which the stringed instruments play the melody together in octaves, each in a rich and warm part of its register. Simple breadth of treatment is likewise a char- acteristic of the piano part. The whole' passage is, technically, a piece of two-part writing; nevertheless the firm and de- liberate shapes of the accompanying phrases form a quite definite chordal basis, and the harmonic effect is remarkably sonorous. VlOLIH, PlAHO. EX. 199. / ma cantando. 206 CHAMBER MUSIC The use, in a trio, of huge chords for piano and strings answering one another, and the value of syncopated rhythms, have never been better exemplified than in a fine passage towards the end of this movement. EX. 200. fsempre. |^r-°j-^-f-^t^ Np STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 207 Here is music in which the grip is tremendous, and the whole result massive and powerful, yet never for one moment does it sound orchestral in character. The peculiar effect of the thick chords in the piano, often wide apart with frequent thirds low down in the bass, should be noted ; but the student may be warned against actually imitating a feature so essen- tially Brahmsian that it is almost a mannerism. The second movement, a Presto non assai, is as fragile and delicate as the first is stormy and forcible. The strings at the outset are muted, and though (quite unusually) the key is the same, the mood is so contrasted that no monotony is felt. EX 201. Violin. AND 'Cello. PlAHO. Presto non assai. eon sor dini. V p semplice. •^ ^^^[[nr ^S^j^^ VlOLIH. It is like some veiled figure gliding mysteriously before us. There is almost an unearthly beauty in the outline of the 2o8 CHAMBER MUSIC shadowy, drooping, opening phrase on the piano, with the violin and 'cello playing fading echoes of its first four notes. The device of soft accompanying chords on the strings has never . been better employed than it is in the immediately ensuing bars, against the gently throbbing undulations of the pianist's melody. Later in the movement there is an excellent example of quick pizzicato notes, forte, passing in a continuous arpeggio from one instrument to the other — very difficult to play, but quite fascinatingly beautiful when properly accomplished. It should be noticed that the piano, to preserve the balance, plays softly against them. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 209 In the Andante Grazioso which follows, the strings are used alternately with the piano, and the time is unusual, a bar of f heing followed by two bars of ^. The opening may be quoted to show how skilfully the two stringed instruments may be made completely self-satisfactory when the piano is silent. Andante grazioso. EX. 203. ViOUN. 'C£LLO. The immediate repetition of these six bars by the piano alone is enriched with fuller harmony, the right hand having, in addition to the melody, chords on the weak quavers of the bar. The conversational treatment is continued throughout most of the movement : sometimes the questions and answers come quicker one after another, sometimes the phrases over- lap, but strings and piano have quite independent life almost all the time. The last movement is as fine and original as the rest, but enough has been cited to show some of the best ways of adapting a difficult combination to modern needs. If, by way of warning, it may again be permissible to sub- mit to the reader samples of unsuitable modes of writing, there is an irresistible temptation to quote from Tschaikowsky's Trio in A minor. Op. 50 ("To the memory of a great artist"), a work which, while musically intense and sensitive, altogether lacks restraint, and continually oversteps the recognised boun- daries of Chamber Music. To do Tschaikowsky justice it must be said that he was himself fully conscious of the defici- encies which mar his work. In writing to a friend immediately after its completion, he says : " I am afraid, having written all my life for the orchestra and only taken late in life to Chamber Music, I may have failed to adapt the instrumental combination to my musical thoughts. In short, I fear I may have arranged 2IO CHAMBER MUSIC music of a symphonic character as a trio, instead of writing directly for my instruments." ^ If we inspect the work we see that it is in the climaxes, and in the passages which lead up to them, that the chief errors of judgment and taste are com- mitted. When we reach one of the most frenzied portions of the first movement, as an instance, we find that the following distribution of parts is quite inadequate to express the emotion of the moment. ViOIiIH. 'Cello. PlAHO. EX. 204. This flagrant piece of make-believe obviously fails to justify its existence. The piano is playing a concerto, and the two strings are feebly endeavouring to imitate the colouring of an » The Life and Letters of Peter llich Tachaihowsky, edited by Rosa Newmaroh. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 211 orchestral ' tutti.' A good idea is thrown away, and the artistic value of the composition is soiled and shattered. More effective, but no less ill-judged, is the attempt to obtain a violent contrast in the Mazurka variation of the second movement, when the key suddenly changes to C major, and the whole sham orchestral battery is again brought into play, reminding one of a child's game of soldiers. EX. 205. Tempo di mazurka. Not is it only in the strenuous passages that the symphonic tendency is evident. Many of the more restrained episodes, including the final Coda to the last movement (fine and im- pressive as it is as music), suggest the orchestra in their large elemental outlines, and in their insistence on the continuous reiteration of the same harmonies. EX. 206. 'Cello. PlAKO. Luguire, piangendo. 212 CHAMBER MUSIC dim. m ^ ^M rf=^^ ^ i'i'^i'i The eircumstanee that this trio is full of fine ideas only serves to throw the inadequacy of their expression into stronger relief. There are many who prefer it to the Brahms trios, but it is safe to say that not one of those many really understands, or cares for, the finer shades of Chamber Music. There may be lovers of orchestral sound who derive greater satisfaction from a trio which suggests larger things, however slightly, than from a work which frankly accepts the qualities and quantities by which its actual interpretation is bounded — ^just as they may prefer piano-duet arrangements of symphonies to solo sonatas. But this implies imagination in excess of artistic insight. Such a work as the Tschaikowsky trio could no more be listened to as it was meant to be by a man who had never heard an orchestra than it could be composed by such a man. If we add a viola part to the ordinary trio combination (making a string-trio with piano), or an extra violin as well as a viola (making a string-quartet with piano), our task at once becomes an easier one to cope with, and the dangers that beset us are lessened. It might be thought that a composer by increasing his instrumental forces would render himself more liable to fall into a symphonic style. The fact is that the more easily sufficient unto itself the combination he chooses may be made, the less alluring the temptation becomes to ape other things. Moreover, should he, in some measure, succumb, the positive mischief wrought by his defections will be neither as great nor as distressingly evident. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 213 There will now be no difficulty in making the string-writing complete in itself, and it will be more frequently possible to give the piano a rest, and release it from its former obligation of continually filling up the bare spaces of an incomplete harmonic scaffolding. This in itself will afford many new opportunities for diversity. The gap between the violin and 'cello (playing in their normal registers), which was one of the chief sources of trouble in trio-writing, will be no longer existent, and the general strengthening of the string tone will decidedly make for a more evenly-matched adjustment of the ensemble. Setting aside a few not very important examples by Mozart, an*' some entirely negligible early works by Beethoven and Mendelssohn, we find the pianoforte quartet combination prac- tically unexploited by great composers until the time of Schumann. As for the pianoforte quintet this may be said to be absolutely the invention of Schumann, whose one and only example remains to this day amongst the three or four greatest in existence. Almost all the works of this class worthy of study are therefore fairly advanced in style, and employ the modern piano used in modern pianistic fashion. Schumann's piano quartet (in Eflat, Op. 47) has in three of its movements a fine romantic spirit and impetus, but suffers to some extent from the faults observed in his fcrios and sonatas for violin and piano : there is often too little indepen- dent enterprise in the string parts, and the piano is rather constantly utilised merely to reinforce them. The slow move- ment boasts a sentimental subject, which 'cellists generally render rather more aggressively sentimental than necessary, and the piano part is here very largel y mere aocomp animfint. More diversity of treatment is to be found in the piano quartets of Brahms, which, like the trios, are supremely good models. If we glance at the opening of the Quartet in G minor, Op. 25, we shall see at once how the combination employed has influenced the composer in his choice of a subject. This is a theme which is equally well suited to strings or piano, and is also capable of being split up into sections and phrases. 214 CHAMBER MUSIC Allegro. EX. 207. PlAHO. m J- p I espressivo. m gB^ ^^ -r-r ^^ r f nit ^^i-f-r-n - ^^ =^ It is soon evident that this is one of the composer's intentions. The first episode, however, has different matter and a different manner : — EX. 208. A^ U Violin AND Viola. 'Cello. FlAHO. ^i=c-r— r— r— c- =g=f=^£ The music is here devised on the effective 'three-part' basis of which much has been said in earlier chapters ; the piano and two upper strings converse one with another whilst the 'cello holds the whole together with its continuous syncopated pedal-note STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 215 In the succeeding Intermezzo the strings are used very much as a string-trio independent of the piano, and the device of moving the parts in sixths (as shown on the preceding page) is once more much resorted to, both on the piano and strings. It is a charmingly romantic movement, with an extra touch of animation in the middle section. In the slow movement there is an animato section with a rhythmical division of the parts of much interest to the listener : — Animato. EX. 209. 2l6 CHAMBER MUSIC This, continuing in similar strain for some time, rises to a climax, when the position of strings and. piano are exchanged. Both arrangements are equally felicitous, thanks to the wise choice of theme and figuration. Violin The subject of the Finale, a Eondo alia Zingarese, gives an example of a very unusual method of procedure in Brahms — the absolute doubling of the strings and piano in the same octave. This continues for a considerable number of bars. The subject is so rhythmic, so definite and direct, that the intention of the composer (as in some similar cases by Schu- mann) is evidently to combine all forces to present it. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 217 Of the other two pianoforte quartets by Brahms, that in A major is the most striking and inspiriting. Following closely upon the heels of the work in G minor, for it bears the Opus number 26, it exhibits perhaps more resource and more confi- dence than its immediate predecessor. Amongst the many interestjng features of its first movement may be noted the frequent treatment of the three strings as one rhythmic body, and the skilful interchanging of figures equally suited to both violin and keyboard. EX. 211. VlOLIH Viola. 'Cello. FUHO. MUgro non troppo. ff 2l8 CHAMBER MUSIC It will be instructive, also, to notice the varieties of colour and movement that are brought to bear upon a little subsidiary- theme which appears, at first, on the strings alone. ViOUN 'Cello. EX. 212. Beginning as above shown, the two upper parts are, after eight bars, transferred to the piano, where they are doubled in the upper octave, the 'cello providing a more animated variant of its previous figuration, and the viola some pizzicato chords which help to mark the rhythm. EX. 213. Viola. 'Cello. Piano. pizs. Later in the movement, when the same subject returns in the key of A, yet another scheme of distribution is resorted to, the nature of which can be gathered from the two bars given below : — Viola, 'Cello. PlAHO. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 219 EX. 214. The crowning beauty of this work, however, is its slow movement, which is full of poetry, and possesses a wealth of varied colouring quite remarkable in Chamber Music. The main theme is given in simple form to the piano, but the strings, to which mutes are applied, follow its outlines with a kind of caressing movement in quavers. The balance is per- fect, the caiUabile of the piano being enhanced, and a tender dreaminess imparted to the melody. Violin. Viola AND 'Cello. Piano. EX. 215. Poco adagio, con sordino, p doles. $ sA Se^ P espress. e dolce. ^ic J f^-^^ -J- -J- . .-*■-• f—dj-^. ^ rJ J^ rJ i^ 220 CHAMBER MUSIC li ^{ J;rri Variety is effected, but the same atmosphere is secured and maintained, when, on the return of the subject, the violin and 'cello (their mutes removed) play the expressive theme in its simple form, two octaves apart. With the piano contributing the quaver figures (slurred in twos as before, and tma corda), the design is completed. Meantime these very quaver figures have been themselves separated from the context and transferred, in Brahms's customary manner,'^ into themes of importance, so that they assume on their reappearance in association with the principal subject something more than their original signi- ficance. In the Coda they are used again for a new melody, and here the music seems more serenely beautiful than ever. EX. 216, PlAKO. 'See also examples on pp. 163 and 164. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 221 Simple as this is, there is a touch of magic in it. It will be difficult for those who have never heard the work to realise how exquisite the descending scale of repeated notes on the 'cello sounds, and how well the blending of string and piano tone is contrived. One of the very finest pianoforte-quartets of modern times is that of Faur6 in C minor, Op. 15, which is so alert, and withal so dignified, that it will not suffer by comparison even with the masterpieces of Brahms. The engaging rhythm of the openin g subjec t- jf ^^(^- firg t^ movement strikes the hearer at once. All three strings participate, and the piano, playing chords after each beat, s hows up th e strength of the theme. EX. 217. Violin and Viola in unison ; 'Cello octave below. Piano. Allegro molto moderato. f 222 CHAMBER MUSIC This is a clear example of a method of writing which may be certain of effect if it is not too long continued, or rendered cheap by commonplace accompaniment. In this ease the whole movement is consistently on a high level of dignity and authority. The Scherzo which follows is remarkably original, and a few bars must be quoted to show something which has not been demonstrated before — t he use of pizzicat o chords (pp) to ^ accompany a sing le^ote tune on__the piano. After six bars of strings alone (pizzicato), the following statement of the chief theme is heard: — EX. 218. Sclierzo. Allegro vivo. pp pisz. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 223 J--, i 1^^^^ m^ ^=^ ac=s= I Among other points noticeable in this movement one may mention the fr equency with w hin.h t he violin and viola play. a piquantjittle melody (pianissimo) in urmon (not octaves) with each other-7-an unusual colouring being the result. Tt^ft g1 nw TnnvATTiPTih not Very important in dimensions, has breadth and beauty; the Finale recaptures some of the rhythmical force of the opening Allegro, and boasts a very^- fine and memorable melody for second subject . As a whole, however, the first two movements are the most striking features of the work. ! Faur6 has since written another quartet, in G- minor. Op. 45. It repeats some of the excellences of the previous work, and is distinguished by similarly attractive s ubject-matte r. In the Scherzo he makes a furtherexperim5it with the idea of 'pizzicato chords , but it is not so delicately contrived nor so happily inspired. Before quitting the subject of piano-quartets one yet more' recent example, typifying some quite modern trends of thought, may be mentioned. Frank Bridge , in his brief one-movement "Riantas^" for this combination, shows a predilection for fanciful modes of presenting his ideas which well accords with the title given to the work. He is a master of effect, and 224 CHAMBER MUSIC loves to juggle with his themes and startle with swift surprises. The main material of the second section, in D minor, has a subject which is strikingly novel, and much is made of it. In its simplest form the opening bars stand thus : — EX. 219. Viola. Cello. Piano. No less effective is the succeeding passage, where the theme ^jrts away to the_piangi_aiid.. the strings supply a background in which there is much alertness and movement. EX. 220. ViOLIH. Viola. 'Cello. Piano. m ' Vf-rT- rf-p-rp-r-, ' rr^LL ■m-m- ^ £3_1 STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 225 ^ j:-»^j:-J-3[-i j:'J-:ai:-»^j: U ' *ifL*V« ^ W.*V*.«L* l t^ Most novel of all is the climax of the section. The s tring p arts form a solid harmonic structure on a _dou.ble pedal;_^iich,' dwelli n g for the _ £nal bar s upon j.. pungent jiisQflid,Jadss,away without in the least relaxing the tension, the little piano figure c urling upwa rd li ke a thin column of drifting smoke. The" way in which the strange sounds are set out before us is as masterly as it is original, and one may find a subtle pleasure in examining on paper what, in performance, seems almost too elusive to grasp. EX. 221. i ■'^- a. t # ^-^ j T- i^^ ?^Jn i j?^ l^ ^^^ l ^?8^^ ^ 226 CHAMBER MUSIC dim. P Much of the material already placed before the reader in this chapter will, of course, have as much direct bearing upon pianoforte quintets as upon the combinations already dealt with, but nevertheless there is still some further ground to cover, and a few partially cultivated tracts may be surveyed with a view to possible expansion. The form of the pianoforte quintet was, as has already been said, practically discovered by Schumann, and it is surprising that composers since his time have provided so few worthy successors to his famous work in Eflat (Op. 44) which was published in 1843. It can hardly Be questioned that a quintet for piano, two violins, viola, and /cello is the most perfect combination of strings and keyboard- /instrument that has been devised — tor a string-quartet forms 'a better balance with the piano, and is admittedly more satis- factory in itself than a string trio. It will already have been realised in the extracts given from quartets, that the usual function of the piano in such works is not merely to provide an additional part to the strings, but to supply a harmonic structure as complete in itself as the strings in combination, and capable of being used in the same way. Indeed, the employment of the piano for a single part, as in the second example given from Faur6, is so exceptional as to acquire a special interest of its own. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 227 It is obvious, therefore, that the more usual method of balancing the forces will be easier acquired with a body of four strings than with three, and their presence is likely to aid in the construction of a better piano part. In the Schumann quintet, which is more remarkable for its musical \;alue and the vitality of its ideas than for the aptness of its setting, the piano predominates unduly. Very little of it could be quoted as exemplary quintet-wr*ing, thoiigh it is nearly all absolutely effective. Thfi-firs t moyeBa e i it depen ds alm ost entirely upon the piano for itsJtiaEBlDnia. basis : the strings_ when not doubling the actual notes of the piano part , \ ^r mereljt-fiUing. in, arg generally engaged in playing is olated melodic phrases, and t he effect is_gQmgsdia,t„ scrappy andjdis; jointed- in j^aees The second movement has some specially interesting features. Schumann here modifies his habit_j)f doubUn£^^ng^aiid..piano parts by combining different rhythms, as in the following example, where the effect of the piano triplets in conjunction with the quavers in the second violin and viola parts is extremely happy : — EX. 222. Un poeo largamente. espressivo ma sempre piano. ISlVlOUJT. 2hd Violin. Viola. 'Cello. PlAHO. 228 CHAMBER MUSIC ^r- f- | £=3^ ^ ! ^^ 'Wr^~=^ gEE^a^ ^ ^^^ rf=^ f • f .f . On the repetition of the same material later in the move- ment the piano has arpeggios in quaver triplets, while the I strings preserve a simUar demeanour^ this mixture of rhythms proving equally felicitous. -/"The Scherzo has a great deal of jioubling of piano and. string ( parts in scjlgs, but in the first of its two trios there is some writing which exhibits the fanciful and charming device of following the outlines of a melody (in canon) in the curves of an accompaniment which murmurs in the background. Molto vivace* EX. 223. 1st and 2hd Violins. Viola and 'Cello. Fluid. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 229 In the subject of the Final e repeated chords for the strings form the support to a forcible unison melody on the piano. The effect is a little square, but the character of the theme is here well suited to this often questionable method — as well suited as it is to the elaborate contrapuntal treatment vouch- safed in the Coda, for the presentation of which a piano quintet seems, however, hardly the most satisfactory choice of medium. Schumann's initiative, and to a certain extent his methods, may be considered largely responsible for the existence of three great piano quintets by Brahms, Dvorak, .and C6sar Franck, all of which are wealthier in detail than their forerunner, and exhibit many notable developments and expansions. Of Brahms's writing for strings and piano so much has already been said that there is little to add at this juncture. His quintet. Op. 34, is, however, one of his richest and most splendid works. The string-writing is more elaborate than in the case of Schumann, and, it may be said, far more effectively suited to the instruments. The piano part seldom predomi- nates, yet it is not by any means unimportant, and certainly not ungrateful. As in his trios and quartets he is careful to cho iise subjects which are readily interchangeable between piano and strings, whilst in addition he makes use of the increased strength of the latter in the devising of passages of 230 CHAMBER MUSIC which the quartet is the groundwork and the piano an effective adjunct. The following bars from the first movement will not only illustrate this, but will also afford an example of pure piano-quintet writing which, for sheer clarity and appro- priateness, would be difficult to excel. Not a note is wasted by doubling. The first and second violins support and give ) colour to the high piano melody, which is essentially pianistic in character and pitch ; and the viola and_ 'cello_ have each their well-defined share in providing a rhythmic and harmonic base. EX. 224. 1st AND 2nd Violins. Viola and 'Cello. Piano, Allegro non troppo. r^rr STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 231 The Dvordk Quintet in A, Op. 81 (published in 1881), is a far lighter composition, but it is especially noteworthy for the ctviVi'Tinr iTof.n|.p, r.f I'fo j^tiQme.c, ^ud for thc stroug sense of colour that it exhibits throughout. The searcher for ' effects ' will do well to dive deeply into this vivacious work, in which he will find many brilliant pages. There is always a fasci- nation in peeping behind the scenes to see how things are done, and the arch-conjurer, Dvorak, produces such glittering\ effects from his diversity of rhythms (in which pizzicato notes,/ bowed melodies, and swiaging pianoforte figures all play a) share) that it is worth while specially dissecting some of the ' movements, all of which are conceived in the true spirit of Chamber Music, despite the marked character of the colouring j employed. In the second,-J5aQ3ffim£n.ty labelled " Dumka " (a peculiar Bohemian piece, sometimes not very aptly translated as an "Elegy"), we shall find some of the best evidences of rhythmic jma^stoy_in_theJCDrk. After the fashion of a Eondol the pri ncipal subject i" "B' «barp minnr nr?.f!nr.g, in various guises, fo ur time s. This subject really consists of two very calm and solemn themes in combination, and its third state- ment — following closely upon a wild and frenzied episode in which all the instruments play with the utmost vigour — is perhaps, from the point of view of presentation, the most striking of all. 232 CHAMBER MUSIC EX. 22S. 1st Violih. 2nd Viouif Viola. 'Cello. Plano. i J J I i i A>u{an^< con moco. J. p espressivo. p espremvo. I.Ped.) $ tfc dim. ^ STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 233 It will be seen that the duet is shared by the first violin ^.5d_YMa_on jbhis joccasion, and that the violaji as th e upper- aioat-line. The jai^w ato chords of the second violin are most telling, and the low notes of the 'cello here form a very satisfactory bass to the whole structure, for the piano ;p.art, though clearly rlpfinafl, is biif. a. thin wave .of -SOUud. One very notable episode of this Dumka may also be quoted, if only for the skill shown in the mixlag_a£_rh ythms and colours. Coming first, as it does, after the very calm and solemn opening page, the piu mosso from which the following bars are selected has a comparatively animated effect owing to the restlessness of the figuration : — PlASO. EX. 226. Andante con moto (un pocfiettino piit mosso). sempre espressivo. mp doles. 234 CHAMBER MUSIC The two violins clearly share, the' melodic interest, and the rest of the scheme consists entirely of accompaniment, but the accompaniment means much, and the pizzicato notes of the lower strings, combined with the quiet rocking motion expressed in the pianoforte part, contribute very materially to the success sof the ensemble. A like ease and facility distinguish the ingenuities which are pressed into service in the Scherzo — a wholly delectable movement where not a bar misses the effect at which it aims. It is difficult to make choice where all is so fanciful, but the eight bars here given may be deemed a fair specimen of the delicate workmanship which lightens the simplest and most unsophisticated melody and makes it sparkle in its setting : — STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 235 EX. 227. 1st Violik. 2hd Violik. Viola. 'Cello. PlAHO. pp piSB, pp pizs. i i ^ > ^ ^ i f r r ^ ^ m r r r J- | _aj — _^ H^- r F - iJgL J " Sgji^' r-^-^ ^ f^^ ^— f- =^^=F= $ ^^^ ^1^^ e^ SE^^ -^m^m ^^ ^ ^^^ J «^ r 236 CHAMBER MUSIC The .Quint et in F minor of Cfear Franck . probably written in the same year as that of Dvorak, is nevertheless a work which more definitely „embodies,.j;hg„niodCTn^ point of view. Besides being a powerful composition it shows us many hitherto ' unexplored methods of part-distribution. As in the case of the same master's violin and piano sonata, this quintet may be regarded as the principal forerunner of a large class of more recent ensemble works. The four strings are treated less as a quartet than formerly, and more as a single mass of string sound. There is a deep gloom pervading the work, which is so intensely dramatic in feeling that it demands an almost crude strength of outline which seems, at times, too spacious for Chamber Music. Allegro dramatico. fff EX. 228. There is a great_dealj)f~unisonjmting fgrjhe^strings similar in character to that shown above, and the piano has every- 237 STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE where an enoraaously interesting part. A fine passage occurring at a big ^tmax-tnwardrs" tlie end 'of the first movement is, it must he admitted, extremely orchestral, thou gh the effec t^cured is one of tremendous breadth__and,m£ensity,ji,nd so completely accords with the sginFor the movement that it soundsjegiti- mate enough. , EX. 229. ^ J i J. si J J J J ^ ^^ ijr- ^J *!j Moreover, the sloyy movement, reveals many new beauties of pure ensemble-writingjDesides a great d^th of sentiment. Amongst many striking episodes one may recall the passage 238 CHAMBER MUSIC beginning as follows, which shows another, and less question- able, side of the composer's art : — EX. 230. Lento, dolcissimo jna cantabile. dolcissimo ma cwniahile^ ^ ^ STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 239 Delicacy and sweetness could scarcely have been better expressed in music than they are here, and such tenderness brings welcome refreshment in the midst of the prevailing oppressive atmosphere. A few brief quotations from three of the most noteworthy quintets by living composers may now be set forth in order to show some further devices afforded by the combination of strings and piano. There is much deft treatment in the quintet of Saint-Saens^ Op. 14. It is a work which is seldom played in this country, but it is thoroughly characteristic of a composer whose easy skill and surety of touch have been demonstrated in every branch of musical composition. The ensuing bars from the opening movement will show how the string-quartet can be utilised to continue a melody begun by the piano : — EX. 231. AC£egro moOeraCo e maestoso, p cresc. Viola. 'Cello. PlAHO. g^Trrr-gr^ p cresc. p cresc. \ r}j ^ ^ 240 CHAMBER MUSIC Notice should be taken of the positions given to the 'cello and viola in the last two measures, and the evenly fluent character of the string-writing. In the music which immedi- ately follows this passage the answering phrases of the melody come closer together, and the scheme is thus split up into half- bar figures Later the position of affairs is reversed, and it may be noted that the distribution of the parts is altered, with facile skill, to suit the case — the piano having a semiquaver passage in the left hand, whilst the strings play the opening phrase p and staccato. EX. 232. Steihos. Piano. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 241 Ernst von Dohnanyi in his youthful Quintet in minor, Op. 1, indulges in some instructive methods of writing which may profitahly be investigated. In the following example, from the busy Coda of the first movement, he shows how the strings can effectively be made to move in a body in contrary motion with the chords of the piano : — BX. 233. Viola akd 'Cello. FlANO. ^^ 242 CHAMBER MUSIC This illustration shows also that repeated notes, seldom desirable in a string quartet, may more often be suitably used when that combination is employed in association with the piano, especially in loud and strenuous moments. In the trio of the Scherzo of the same work Dohnanyi disposes his parts in a clear and simple way, which provides an interesting variant upon the method of merely doubling piano and strings so frequently adopted by Schumann. It will be seen that all the instruments of the quarte^ play the same notes as the piano in the octave above, the piano having four-part harmony as well as the strings, without actually doubling a single note at the same pitch. The result is rich and sonorous in a transparent and unpretentious way. EX. 234. Allegro vivace. Piano. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 243 ^. Ar :A f^3B ^ ^^g i 3^ A^ ^^^ 't=^ r — T The finely-wrought Quintet in C minor of James Friskin (also an Op. 1) is not a whit less distinguished than that of Dohnanyi, though no doubt its British origin will, for a time, militate against its universal acceptance. One brief quotation may be given since it presents an excellent example of the use of all the strings in octaves at a big melodic climax. The music is not, as in the case of the extracts given from C&ar Franck, dramatic in tone, but shows how a broad healthy tune, strong enough to impress without any trappings whatsoever, may be effectively disposed in a way that fully reveals its essential substance and dignity; EX. 235. 244 CHAMBER MUSIC In bringing a long chapter to a conclusion the author is conscious that, with all his prolixity, he has only been able to touch upon the veriest fringe of a large subject. In dealing with quartets and quintets, for instance, the illustrations have been practically confined to passages where all the component parts of these combinations are used at once. It will, he hopes, be self-evident that to k%ep all the players continually at work would result in monotony, however skilfully the com- poser might contrive to balance the instrumental forces requi- sitioned. Solo passag es are therefore freq uently iesirahle Jor the sake^of con.trasJi:r-the pj ano ma y_Qft ^ be used alonR for n iany bars at a stretch, and sojmay the strings, and-any.iif.-.the re jour ces ^ which have been noted in connection with duet- sonatas or trios may be brought into play when any special variety or lightness is considered desirable. If a double-bass is chosen for the fifth instrument in a piano quintet, in place of a second violin (as it is in the famous work by Schubert known as " The Trout "), the student may be referred to the remarks upon its treatment given in Chapter YL, and advised to use the combination mainly as a piano quartet, frequently employing the double-bass to strengthen the lowest part. There are, however, few good instances of this species of ensemble in existence, although a noteworthy example by Hermann Goetz is well worth studying. STRINGS WITH PIANOFORTE 245 Our own countryman, Josef Holbrooke, has written a very striking sextet in which the ordinary piano quintet is supple- mented by a double-bass, with admirable results, and it is perhaps a pity that experiments in similar directions are not more frequently prosecuted. To all but very severe purists, who object on principle to combining the string quartet with an instrument tuned on the system of equal temperament, finely conceived piano quintets must be an unfailing delight, and though we may admit that a measure of that serene and absolute perfection which belongs only to unadulterated string-playing is sacrificed, or partially hidden, when a pianist is added to the ensemble-party, there are compensations. All who play the piano, at all events, must realise that such works have been a means of dignifying the instrument of their choice, and of drawing from it qualities no less distinctive and valuable than those which receive prominence in solo-writing. And, if for this alone, the piano quintet did not vainly spring into existence when Schumann, at the height of his powers, wrote the inspiring work by which he is chiefly remembered to-day. His lead has not been followed by a legion, but the worth of a distinguished few has in no capacity been more clearly demonstrated than in, the isolated works in this particular form which so handsomely adorn the Chamber Music literature of modern times. CHAPTER VIII. WIND INSTEUMENTS. When we come to consider the employment of wind instru- ments in Chamber Music, we are face to face with many new problems. In dealing with stringed instruments we have seen that, being similar in formation and anatomy, all the members of the violin family are similar in tone ; and stress has been laid upon the necessity of making the utmost capital out of the actual differences in shades of timbre that do exist amongst them, in order to gain contrast and a certain measure of colouring in ensemble work. Before we can satisfactorily handle wind combinations we shall have to learn how to balance instruments of dissimilar mechanisms and technical capabilities, totally different tone- qualities, and varying degrees of body and power. If we had merely to deal, shall we say, with oboes, English horns, and bassoons (double-reed instruments of like pattern and organism), the problems to be encountered would be comparatively easy of solution. But in mixing the varied qualities of such instru- ments as the flute, the clarinet, the oboe, and the horn, we are obliged continually to reckon with the fundamental differences of tone and effect produced, severally, by blowing through a hole into a narrow pipe, through a single or double reed into cylindrical or conical tubes, or through a cup-shaped mouth- piece into a curved and winding metal passage. Furthermore, we must learn to recognise their strength and value when combined with strings or piano, either singly or in blended masses. It may be said at once that no wind player has quite the WIND INSTRUMENTS 247 same control over tone-quality or intonation that is possessed by a string player. In modern times great improvements have been effected in the mechanism of wind instruments, and good chromatic scales have become practicable upon them all, whereas years ago these were uncertain on some instruments and impossible on others. So that the composer of to-day — ^having a more perfect machinery at his command, whilst the problems as to tone-colour and balance remain as they were in Mozart's time — may find that these greatly increased execu- tive facilities expose him to fresh dangers, inasmuch as they may induce him to write what is certainly possible but quite unsuitable. The musician has, however, another machinery to take into Iccount — the machinery of human lungs and muscles, which remains just as it was when the first rude pipes and reeds were stirred to music by the breath of man. If he is accus- tomed to write for strings or piano, he must remember that wind instruments cannot be made to play for very long without a break, as the players need occasional rests for breathing and the relief of lip-tension ; and if he is writing a whole composition for wind alone, he. must not keep all his forces continuously working, but split them up, now and again, into smaller sections. Even if this were not a necessary pre- caution from the practical standpoint, it would still be desirable in a musical sense, for wind instruments, en masse, are heavier and noisier than strings, and it is important to do everything possible to lighten the sound whenever an opportunity is afforded. Having said thus much by way of preamble, an attempt will now be made to explain the main characteristics of the wind instruments in general use in Chamber Music, and to give examples of each in turn used in combination with strings or piano : after this has been done, the more difficult matter of blending these heterogeneous factors together in a satisfactory way will briefly be dealt with, and passages quoted to show how successfully all obstacles can be sur- mounted by the exercise of careful manipulation and discreet musicianship. 448 CHAMBER MUSIC The highest- pitched wind instrument which will be con- sidered here is the flute, the shrill piccolo being altogether foreign to the character of Chamber Music. Despite its elasticity, and the admirable effect of its tone in combination with strings, the flute has been very scantily pro- vided for by great composers in their chamber works. In the quintets for wind and piano by both Mozart and Beethoven the oboe is employed instead of the flute, doubtless because of its greater power of penetration and more decided colouring. Yet the flute is a markedly poetic instrument. It is limpid and pure, and if lacking in warmth and quite incapable of passionate excitement, it is an admirable medium for the expression of sweetness, languor, and tender longing. It can be weird and unearthly, playful or melancholy, with equal facility. The quality of the lower notes has been well described by E. S. Eockstro as a compromise between the somewhat nasal tone of the oboe and the mournful cooing of a dove, whilst the upper notes are bright and cheerful, gaining their greatest effect in agile and rapid music. When combining the flute with other instruments, it is necessary to keep in constant remembrance the fact that the lower middle tones have very little strength and no penetrating timbre, and are therefore very easily overpowered. The very low notes, rich in quality, require a great deal of breath, and it is therefore injudicious to write too continuously in the lowest octave, which is extremely tiring for the player. Taking everything into consideration the flute in Chamber Music is likely to prove far more effective in a combination of few instruments, where its gentle individuality may pre- dominate, than in works designed in seven or eight parts : it has no place in either the Septet of Beethoven or the Octet of Schubert, where its delicate characteristics might easily have been swamped and destroyed. Flute solo -music is not generally of high rank, and the superficial agility which characterises most of it has asserted itself also in Chamber Music in many instances where the in- strument has been admitted. The flute, nevertheless, has had its devotees. Kuhlau, a voluminous and serious-minded, if not a WIND INSTRUMENTS 249 great composer, devoted nearly his whole life to the writing of ensemble music in which it figured. Weber has used the instrument in a trio (with -violoncello and piano), and Haydn composed two trios for two flutes and violoncello which are worthy of close inspection. The student wiU, however, find more and better examples of the flute's varied activities in orchestral scores : for the most apt use of its medium register he may be referred to a well-known interlude in Gluck's " Orfeo," and some beautiful music in the second act of the same composer's " Armide " : Mozart's " Zauberflote " will provide him with many passages of clear expressiveness: whilst the concluding pages of the Scherzo from Mendelssohn's " Midsummer Night's Dream " music will afford a better model for the use of a soft velvety staccato tone in notes of equal value than can be instanced elsewhere. Perhaps the most noteworthy, and at the same time the most popular, chamber work in which the flute has a part is the Serenade for Flute, Violin, and Viola, Op. 25, of Beethoven, a most refreshing composition, full of happy ideas and playful good humour. The flrst of the six miniature movements of which the work is composed begins with the utterance, by the flute alone, of a kind of fairy trumpet-call : — EX. 236. Flute. There is a certain affinity between the flute and the trumpet, and passages of this character are always effective. In the theme of the fourth movement, an Andante with variations, Beethoven uses the flute to double the violin in the octave above, producing, with the aid of double-stoppings on the stringed instruments, a singularly full sound as well as a very pleasant colouring. 250 Flute. Violin. CHAMBER MUSIC EX. 237. Later, when agility of movement is required, the flute is entirely in its element, and the following extract from one of the variations shows, in small space, some of the most suitable forms of passage- work available : — EX. 238. Andante. FLUTa WIND INSTRUMENTS 251 The staccato semiquavers, skipping wide intervals, are par- ticularly effective and quite easy of performance, whilst the bird-like trill, the slurred scale, and the dainty phrasing of the two final bars are all essentially flute music par excellence. The early flutes which executed the music written by Mozart and Beethoven were not so perfectly constructed as those in use at the present day. Their low notes were un- certain and liable to be so out of tune that these composers were quite wise in using them very sparingly. Nowadays a musician could devise many passages of special effect with their aid, and Max Eeger in his Serenade, Op. 77 (for the same combination as the work just discussed), shows us a use for the flute undreamed of by Beethoven. EX. 239. FlUTE. VlOUH. Viola. Eeger's horn notes are, in their way, quite as suggestive as Beethoven's trumpet-call, but, unfortunately, the work as a whole is not very distinctive, and cannot be considered a striking addition to flute literature. 252 CHAMBER MUSIC The flute tone blends exceedingly well with the piano, better indeed than that of any other wind instrument. If the student will consult the well-known and very charming Eomance for this combination by Saint-Saens he will see how wide is the possible scope of the flute's expressive and active powers, and may learn some lessons in the art of writing an adequate accompaniment which will not obscure them. Amongst other features displayed in the work the special effectiveness of rapid chromatic scales, extending over almost the entire compass of the instrument, may be duly noted. EX. 240. Moderaio assai, mf cresc. Two modern works for flute and piano by British composers may be mentioned as well worthy of critical examination: a bright Suite by York Bowen ; and a poetic Idyll by Katharine Eggar, in which the suitability of the flute for suggesting the beauty of bird-songs is recognised in a delightful and most sensitive manner. The oboe, or hautboy, is a double-reed instrument of ancient lineage, and it holds its own proudly to-day, being indispensable WIND INSTRUMENTS 253 in the orchestra and of great vakie in Chamber Music. The tone of the oboe is thin and not powerful, but peculiarly pene- trating. In slow movements it is capable of tender pleading expression, and in music of a pastoral character it is very happily suited, suggesting, as it does, the rural simplicity of a shepherd's pipe. The oboe has not the elasticity or easy brilliance of the flute, nor is it capable of anything like the range of expression of the clarinet, and, if it has some power of agility, extremely rapid passages are seldom well fitted for it unless of a sportive or humorous character. It is, however, quite in its element in music of a merry or vivacious type where the tempo is moderately quick, and the upper and medium registers only are used. The instrument has but a small range of effective notes. The tones between and its highest note w^ are over-shrUl, and, though one can write with safety as low as the B below middle C, the notes beneath are inclined to be rough and harsh in quahty. The oboe is therefore the most limited in compass of all wood-wind instruments, and on this account, as weU as by reason of its distinctive and somewhat monotonous tone-colour, it is very difficult to obtain variety and contrast when the instrument is continuously playing. Thus, when listening to Beethoven's trio for two oboes and English horn (a species of oboe with tenor compass), it must be confessed that the hearer grows sadly weary of the reedy tone without intermission long before the four movements are over, and he feels, reluctantly, 254 CHAMBER MUSIC that the music itself, in spite of its intrinsic worth, is gradually- losing its power of appeal as the performance proceeds. If the oboe is combined with strings or with other wind instruments of a different timbre, these difficulties will naturally be considerably lessened. There is a quartet for oboe, violin, viola, and 'cello, which may serve as the substance of yet another object-lesson, from that unfailing fountain-head, Mozart. The first movement opens with this pleasant rustic theme : — Oboe, Violin. Viola. 'Cello. The music here perfectly accords with the genius of the instrument, and, in the many florid ornamental episodes which succeed, a like sympathy is manifested. Holding notes on the oboe are very effective, as this passage from the Adagio of the same work will show : — EX. 242. Oboe. 'Cello. WIND INSTRUMENTS ^55 It is the first entry of the instrument in the movement, and the soft sustained tone strikes a tender pleading note which is ahnost human in its appeal. In the final Eondo Mozart writes many agile flute-like figures for the oboe, of which the following extracts (one phrased and the other staccato) are prominent instances : — EX. 243. Allegro. ■" ■ ■ ^''' !^ ^ r r 'r°rT ^ ^ ^ ^^rj^;_rr With the piano the oboe is less well mated, and the only notable composer who has achieved anything like success with this duet combination is Schumann, whose Eomances have many points of interest and charm. They are, however, quite brief and not very important pieces ; such a work as a sonata for oboe and piano would probably prove entirely unsatisfactory, for the extreme limitations of the wind instru- ment would hamper a composer in the conception of his piano part, and its lack of variety of timbre and insufficient technical resource would be keenly felt were it compelled to predominate throughout any composition of constructive importance. Its real usefulness is mainly in its prominence as a melodic voice in works where other wind instruments are employed, and of this function much wOl be said later in the chapter. 256 CHAMBER MUSIC / Of far greater importance at the present juncture is the clarinet, which is of all wind instruments the best adapted for use in' Chamber Music, and, therefore, the most generally provided for by notable composers. The clarinet (in which a single reed is employed) is supposed to have been invented about the year 1690, though it was not generally used by any great writers until the time of Mozart, who wrote several ensemble works in which it figured prominently. This instrument has several advantages over other members of the wood-wind family. It has a large compass and a singularly even tone which, in the hands of an artist, can be graded and controlled to a nicety. It is capable of playing rapidly and brilliantly, and its powers of varied expression are great : moreover, the mellow tones it produces blend uncom- monly well with the strings. The only two clarinets in general use in Chamber Music are those in the keys of Bflat and A. Being what are called ' transposing instruments,' the written music will be lowered a tone and a minor third respectively in actual performance. This gives to the A clarinet the power of playing as low a note as for the compass of the written part may extend, if needed, from ^ to about Even higher notes are possible, but the quality of tone obtained on notes abov6 i a WIND INSTRUMENTS 257 is piercing and rather unpleasant. On the whole the writer of chamber music will be wise to rely upon what is called the ' acute register,' extending from about ffiiC=: ^° p T' for passages in which brightness of tone is aimed at ; and upon the ' grave register ' (or Chalumeau) when deep expressiveness, power, or quasi-dramatic strength are demanded by the character of the music. In making choice between the B flat and A clarinets, the. composer will, of course, be chiefly guided by the key which he has selected for his work. Generally speaking, it will be more convenient to use the former for flat keys and the latter for keys with sharp signatures, but there are certain keys for which either instrument is readily adapted. It is important to realise, therefore, that there is another consideration besides mere convenience to be borne in mind. The two instruments differ somewhat in timbre. That in B flat is clear, pure, and . incisive, and perhaps better adapted for the execution of florid passages than its feUow, whilst that in A, with its incom- parably sweet tone, is in some ways more suited to music of a gentle nature, and less generally effective where brilliance of execution is required. The difference, if subtle and slight, is none the less real. The higher the pitch of the clarinet, the less refined and attractive the tone. For that reason the clarinets in C, sometimes available for orchestral music, are not brought forward here for consideration, since they must be accounted too harsh and assertive for chamber works. As a rule, players of the instrument prefer the clarinet in B flat, and this pre- ference should certaiuly not be lost sight of in the writing of ensemble music, in which the interest and good-will of R 258 CHAMBER MUSIC individual performers counts for so much. Both Mozart and Brahms, however, in their clarinet quintets, which afford the iinest obtainable examples of the combination of this instru- ment with strings, make use of the clarinet in A. It is note- worthy that in each of these works the instrument makes its first entry with a passage of arpeggio construction : — EX. 244. HOZABT. EX. 245. Bkahhs. Quintet Op. 115. Arpeggio figures are, it is clear, peculiarly suited to the genius of the clarinet, whose large compass and mobile tone permit sweeping passages of wi^e range to be played with singular surety and effect. EX. 246. Allegro. MozAKT. Clarinet Quintet. In the slow movement of the Brahms quintet this native elasticity is seized upon to give utterance to music of surging intensity. It is impossible to conceive the following bars, for instance, apart from the colour and essentially liquid flow of WIND INSTRUMENTS 259 the clarinet's tone. The swoop of the passage is wonderful, and it forms a superb example of rhapsodical treatment and impulse in Chamber Music : — EX. 247. Adagio (piit lenio). f Strinss, The easy flow and simple sentiment of the Andantino of the same work show that the clarinet is well-suited, too, in melodies of a smooth and elegant type. It is the wind instru- ment that leads with this tuneful strain : — EX. 248. Andantino. the. viola and 'cello accompanying, forming a unity of rich tone which gives a definite colour to the whole section. It is 26o CHAMBER MUSIC worthy of notice, touching Brahms' insight into the capabilities of this instrument, that in the ensuing Presto non assai, for which this Andantino is a kind of mental preparation, the theme given forth by the first violin. EX. 249. Presto mm assdi, nta con seniimenio, moUo p Violin. is not once in the course of the movement allotted to the clarinet, for which it is imperfectly suited. Not that the clarinet has no power of expressing delicacy and lightness. The same composer in his Sonata for Piano and Clarinet in F minor (Op. 120, No. 1) gives the theme of the Finale to the wind instrument, and it is a theme which possesses, in addition to these qualities, a slight touch of almost humorous expression. EX. 250. leggiero. WIND INSTRUMENT^ 261 The staccato notes in that particular part of the instrument's compass are so quaint in effect that it is difficult to hear them without a smile. The most characteristic mood of all, from the melodic standpoint, is perhaps achieved when the composer lights upon a tune which is not only expressive and song-like, but makes use of the big sweeping skips which have already been noted as appropriate to the instrument. This rare com- bination of properties may be observed in the first movement of this same work in a prominent theme which begins in the following way : — EX. 251. poco f Although Brahms in this sonata, and in its companion in E flat of the same opus, has contrived some delightful combina- tions of sound, it must be confessed that the association of the clarinet and the piano without the addition of other instru- ments is seldom satisfactory. Truth to tell, the clarinet tone blends but indifferently well with so rigid an instrument, and had not Brahms been inspired by the quite exceptionally^ sensitive and mobile playing of a great artist, it is doubtful if he would have cared to write two such important works for this unpromising combination. It may almost be said that these sonatas were for 'piano and Miihlfeld' rather than ' piano .and clarinet,' and it is almost a despairing hope that they may ever be heard again under similarly ideal condi- , tions. Without in the least wishing to place a check upon the scanty output of wind solo-music, the present author feels bound to advise the student of Chamber Music to use the clarinet in combination with strings or other wind instruments rather than with the piano, lest he should unwittingly do more to discredit it and lay bare its deficiencies than to reveal the beautiful qualities of which it is capable amidst more sympa- thetic surroundings. 262 CHAMBER MUSIC Next to the flute and clarinet, the horn may be accounted the most useful wind instrument in Chamber Music. It is, indeed, the only brass instrument worth considering in this connection. Saint-Saens, it is true, has used the trumpet in his Septet, Op. 67, but the effect is not good, the somewhat blatant character of the music itself affording the best proof of the unwisdom of its employment.^ The horn has a pure and tender tone (albeit somewhat mournful in character when blown softly) which blends admir- ably alike with strings and wood-wind. Its sustained notes have the power, as it were, of binding the other instruments together, giving a smoothness to the music scarcely obtainable in any other way. Horn tones can also be used as a founda- tion for the harmonic scheme, for they form a good rich bass, and no instrument is more effective for melodic solo-passages, provided they are well and suitably devised for it. It is, however, one of the most treacherous and unsafe of instru- ments if recklessly or carelessly treated, and some composers (even great composers) have written unwisely for it. The instrument now in general use is equipped with valves, and is capable of playing every note of the chromatic scale. Old prejudices die hard, and opinions still differ as to the respective merits of the old ' hand horn ' (which was only able to play in a natural way the notes of the ' harmonic series ') and the valve horn of to-day. As all horn players have entirely discarded the former, such discussions are quite profitless, and the I student may, without question, take full advantage of all the opportunities which the modern mechanism affords. At the same time the essential character of the instrument is liable to be lost sight of, unless the series of notes which can be played without altering the length of the tubing or placing the hand in the bell is borne in mind : — \ There is also in existence a Septet for Trumpet, Two Flutes, and Strings, by Vincent D'Indy, Op. 24. 'i Notes for the horn in the baas clef are written an octave lower than actually intended. WIND INSTRUMENTS 263 The study of chamber works written for the old horn will give a clear idea of its native peculiarities, and these should at least be remembered, in spite of the fact that modern improve- ments have enormously increased the scope and use of the instrument. Every note of the chromatic scale can be pro- duced with clear and even tone on the present-day valve horn. Nevertheless, the old device of altering the pitch of the notes by inserting the fingers in the bell of the instrument (a necessity in the case of the hand horn when notes other than those printed above were required) can still be used for the special purpose of obtaining a peculiar tone not otherwise producible — though this tone is not so generally effective in Chamber Music as it is in the orchestra, and if used with emphasis it has a strongly metallic and somewhat bizarre character. ' Closed notes ' (as they are called) will, therefore, not very often be desirable, but when required they may be indicated by the word " boucMe," or (as in Wagner's scores) by the sign -f placed above the notes. The horn, as the student who reads these pages will probably be aware, is also a ' transposing instrument,' though, unlike the clarinet, the parts are written in the key of C, and transpose, downwards, into the key of the horn for which they are intended. Some few modern composers have adopted what seems a wise procedure in attaching a key-signature to horn parts, but at the time of writing the custom is by no means general. For good or ill it is extremely seldom that a horn player of the present day uses any other crook to. his instrument than that which gives the key of F (transposing a perfect fifth lower), though in studying horn music one must make oneself well accustomed to the transpositions demanded when other crooks are attached, especially those in E and E flat, which are sometimes written for even nowadays, though when they are, the players, with calm wilfulness, disregard the composer's instructions and play everything on their favourite horn in F. The library of Chamber Music in which the instrument participates is extensive. Mozart and Beethoven were fond of employing two horns in conjunction with strings. Mozart's 264 CHAMBER MUSIC works in this form do not contain very enterprising horn parts, for the instruments play chiefly holding notes.^ Beet- hoven's Sextet for Strings and Two Horns, Op. 81, is, however, well worth studying. The horns have here many exceedingly difficult things, including rapid scale passages, to play. In quite modern Chamber Music the horn has been little catered for, except in works where several wind instruments are em- ployed, so that very few instances can be given of the special use of the variety with valves in prolonged solo passages. Perhaps the most interesting modern chamber work in which the horn has a predominating part is the Trio in E flat of Brahms (Op. 40), where it is used in association with violin and piano.^ This seems an unpromising combination, and one in which a satisfactory balance would be hard to secure and maintain. All the more instructive is it, therefore, to observe with what rare skill and certainty the artistic proportion is preserved throughout. The subjects are clearly all chosen as much for their suitability for either violin or horn as for their intrinsic beauty. The theme with which the first move- ment opens, EX. 252. Andanie, p dolce espress, ViOUH. leads one to expect the horn tone, although the wind instrument for the moment is silent. And then, when it enters, the violin ' In his Quintet in E flat for one violin, two violas, 'cello and horn, however, Mozart has written an extraordinary part for the wind instrument. The passages it contains are so incredibly difficult that it is not easy to believe that they were ever successfully surmounted by performers on the old hand horn. ^Despite the modernity of the music, a skilful horn-player could actually perform this work without using the valves — a striking evidence of Brahms's insight into the true character of horn music. Indeed the author has it on the authority of Mr. A. Borsdorf that Brahms used in many passages to insist upon the player producing certain notes By inserting the hand in the bell instead of using the pistons. WIND INSTRUMENTS 265 at once finds its fitting place as an interesting background to tlie solo : — EX. 253. ViOLIIf. Horn IN £ FLAT. FlANO. ^^^^ p dolce espress. Pi^l^^ In a similar way the chief subject of the Finale, appearing first on the violin, has an obvious horn flavour, — although the horn never plays more than two bars of it as it stands in its original form. EX. 254. Allegro con trio. P At the same time this merry tune, so delightfully sugges- tive of the chase, contains the nucleus of almost all the developments in which the horn plays a prominent part, and 266 CHAMBER MUSIC is certainly responsible for the invention of the characteristic phrase — EX. 255. HOEN in E FLAT. and the repeated notes EX. 256. HOHN IN E FLAT. which form such an immensely effective feature of the wind music in this work. Amongst latter-day compositions in which prominence is given to the horn, a trio by Josef Holbrooke (Op. 28) may be mentioned, iii which, as regards the instruments employed, the example of Brahms is followed. The music, however, is of less serious calibre, but there are many points of interest to note. Amongst these may be mentioned an episode in the first movement in which the horn plays a smooth solo, mezw- forte, the violin echoing, •pianissimo — in canon — and the piano completing the design by playing lightly throbbing chords. The device is sustained for some space, but it must suf&oe here to quote only the opening bars : — Allegro con irio. pp sempre. EX. 257. ViOLIH. PlAHO. In the Finale of the same work the horn is muted to obtain a special effect in one of the themes. The circumstance WIND INSTRUMENTS 267 is altogether exceptional, though mutes are used often enough in orchestral music at the present day. The value of the horn as a bass instrument has already been alluded to. In a Trio in C minor for Clarinet, Horn, and Piano, by Donald Francis Tovey (Op. 8), some extremely low notes are used, and the effect is very sonorous and grave. The following passage occurs in the first movement, at the begin- ning of an episode in which the clarinet also plays in its lowest register — the combination of deep tones being unusual : — Moderato. EX. 258. mp HOBH m £ FLAT. and, later in the work, we find the horn holding a pedal Gr, pianissimo, whilst the piano announces the subject of the Finale. Allegro nan ianto. EX. 259. PP ^See footnote to page 262. Being in the bass clef this passage sounds a minor third higher than written. 268 CHAMBER MUSIC I'or further apt instances of shape and design in horn writing the reader may be referred to the examples on pages 276, 282, 284, 288, 293 and 295, where in each case recog- nition is apparent of its own particular characteristics, and where the marked differences in demeanour of its companions throw these characteristics into plainly discernible relief. The only other instrument that need be dealt with in this book is the bassoon, an important member of the wood-wind family. Like the oboe, the bassoon has a double-reed, but owing to its somewhat unscientific proportions it is less uniform in tone and less sure in intonation than other wood- wind instruments, though it has a magnificent range and is capable of considerable dignity of expression. In Chamber Music it occupies a similar place amongst wind instruments to that held by the 'cello amongst the strings. The compass available is nearly the same, though it can accomplish a tone lower if needed, and it would be dangerous to write above the B flat three octaves higher than this lowest note. Like the 'cello, therefore, the bassoon is available for tenor and baritone solos, and need by no means be regarded as merely a bass instrument. The notes above middle C have indeed some kinship in tone with those of the 'cello, though they are duller in quality, and there is generally some sense of effort apparent at their emission. The medium register, which may be said to extend for about an octave downwards from middle 0, is powerful, but rather hollow and lacking in charm or colour. The notes of the lowest octave are rich and full, but, in solo passages, it is necessary to use the very deep tones warily lest they sound grotesque. The bassoon, though really a species of bass oboe, combines very well with clarinets, and in certain parts of its compass has a tone bearing some resemblance to that of the horn. It can, therefore, be used effectively when desired for soft music of a sustained character. It is capable of considerable execu- tion, being equally well adapted for legato or staccato passages, and, like the clarinet, it can jump from one register to another with ease and certainty. In bassoon solo music much use is WIND INSTRUMENTS 269 generally made of this agile power, but bassoon solo music is, with few exceptions, so entirely unworthy that it has debased the instrument, and caused it to be regarded by the multitude as a kind of musical buffoon from whom humour of a cheap and obvious type is expected to emanate. The happiest instances of the use of the bassoon may be found in chamber works which employ other wind instruments, and especially in septets and octets where the strings also find a place. Like the oboe the tone of this instrument is in danger of becoming tiresome and monotonous if one is com- pelled to use it continuously in solo passages. An occasional cantabile melody in the tenor register may, however, afford a valuable and welcome touch of colour, and is especially effec- tive when it can rely upon the strings for support. There is a section in the Adagio of Beethoven's Septet, Op. 20, which forms an admirable object-lesson upon this point: — Adaijio caniabile. dolce. EX. 260. Bassoon. s-^b|i R Stbihos. "ILTf ^ '%1-ff 'LLS-rr-rUU- 270 CHAMBER MUSIC Nor need one go further afield in search of a good illustra- tion of the bassoon in a more active mood, for in the third variation of the Andante of the same work there is an ideally characteristic passage, which not only displays the instrument at its very best, but shows how it may be utilised side by side with the clarinet in a companionable manner. ClAEIME'I Andante (winfl part \Jl ^>. , EX. 261. 3 only). dolce. —^ — r-f F^ IN B FLAT. Bassoon. W=^ ioke. ^ ^ rffr 1=£ ^^g m ^ From the limbo of neutral or worthless works for bassoon and piano one may rescue the delightful Sonata in F major by the late William Y. Hurlstone, which the publishers, as if ashamed, have issued as a sonata for 'cello and piano, with no indication of the composer's original intention, save the dedica- tion to an eminent bassoon player, and a few stray low B flats which they have perhaps forgotten to erase ! As the work is in reality almost as ineffective on the stringed instrument as it is happily suited to its original exponent, the writing forms an apt and valuable lessoii in the difference of treatment demanded. The powerful low notes of WIND INSTRUMENTS 271 the bassoon, for instance, do not enforce the necessity of toning down the piano part to slender proportions, a necessity which no composer of accompaniments to 'cello music can dare to ignore. On the other hand, the high notes, so telling on the 'cello, are somewhat weak and require most careful accompanying. These points were all fully recognised by Hurlstone, and it seems at least somewhat unfair to his memory to publish the work, without comment, as a sonata for 'cello when it was most obviously never designed for performance upon that instrument. One brief quotation from the bright and vivacious Piuale wiU suffice to show how admirably the situation is handled. This is a passage in which use is found for the wide skips to which allusion has been made, and it has, moreover, a genuine and delicate humour, as distinct from the mere clowning which does duty for that quality in the bassoon music of inferior writers. The piano, too, shares the interest, and the balance of the two forces is quite impeccable. Bassoon. PlAHO. Vimce. EX. 262. ^f ^ ^ 272 CHAMBER MUSIC r^^= ^ ^ ' j=^ Having commented upon the special characteristics and capabilities of the various wind instruments in general use in Chamber Music, it is now the fitting moment to consider some of the possible methods of combining their several tones together in ensemble writing. As has already been hinted, the difficulties to be met with are far greater than in the case of strings, where an approximate similarity of tone and tech- nique can be counted upon, and part-writing of a polyphonic type may at most times be trusted to make its due effect. There are doubtless many movements of string quartets which could quite easily be played by, say, a flute, an oboe, a clarinet, and a bassoon with scarcely the alteration of a single note, but good string-quartet music would be execrable wind music, and the blending of these four distinct parts would sound absurd, even if account were taken of the separate technical capabilities of each instrument, for the differences of strength, carrying power, and timhre would make hideous battle one with another, and there would be no sort of unity possible. If two clarinets or two oboes were combined with two bassoons, the problem would become easier of solution, and a four-part con- struction would not necessarily be incompatible with good balance ; but a choice of instruments which involves the doubling of the same tone colour is not so generally adopted in Chamber Music, for the methods here demanded savour more of orches- tral writing, where the members of the wood-wind group are almost invariably used in pairs. It is not impossible, however, within a limited sphere, to obtain a charming effect from a trio of sufficiently evenly- matched wind instruments such as an oboe, a clarinet, and a WIND INSTRUMENTS 273 Dassoon, the three-part basis beiug well adapted to show off, severally, the different values of each factor in the ensemble. In Plegier's Trio in B minor this very combination is treated with such a sure touch that the result is delightful. We hear in this passage from the ' Intermezzo,' for instance, the oboe in its playful mood, the bassoon on its most deUcate staccato notes, and the clarinet lending its rich expressive tone to the more smoothly written middle voice which binds the whole together. Oboe. Clarinet IK A. Bassoon. EX. 263. Allegretto schermndo, P p e spressioo. ^ ^^ ^^^^^ Generally speaking, the tone of the oboe does not blend well with that of the clarinet, but the bassoon forms a quite satisfactory support for either, and if (as in the above extract) the composer contrives to make his outside parts satisfactory by themselves (as a melody and bass), and to use the third instrument to fill in the harmony with a separate line of sustained notes, or contrasting counterpoint, he may achieve s 274 CHAMBER MUSIC success in his ensemble. There is, of course, a danger in ■prolonging such a work to the point of monotony, for the resources are so limited, and the imperative need of providing breathing places for the players may also cause considerable trouble. But Flegier gives as much variety as possible, always considers the special aptitudes of the separate instru- ments, and shows due regard for the necessity of brevity in each of the four movements.. In the well-known quintets for wind and piano of Mozart and Beethoven the same three instruments are employed with the addition of a horn. The skill with which this difSBcult mixture of elements is blended together is in both instances quite astonishing-^and particularly so in the case of Mozart's Quintet in E flat, from which two illustrations may be drawn. Let us analyse this passage, which is the opening phrase of the slow movement: — EX. 264. Bassooit. Piano. WIND INSTRUMENTS 275 At the beginning of the melody the oboe and bassoon play softly together in tenths, and the horn provides a pedal bass. Then, at the forU, the clarinet enters to strengthen the oboe part at the octave below. The piano here lends force to the situation, and gives a firm bass for the rest of the eight bars. The manner in which the instruments are grouped in couples at the end should also be noted — oboe and horn in octaves, and clarinet and bassoon in octaves. A reference to the illustration on page 262 will sh,ow that, with one exception, all the horn notes in the last three bars of the above extract belong to the natural harmftnic series. The phrase is effective, and quite easy to play on a hand horn with an E flat crook. There is no four-part writing in the whole passage, and at no moment in its progress could a subordinate voice possibly become unduly prominent. The second illustration is even more striking, and every detail teaches a lesson. It is taken from the final Eondo of the work : — 276 CHAMBER MUSIC EX. 265. Allegretto, Bassoon. PlAHO. ^^ ^^^ [^^-f^H --iP i ' ' ^ J- :g WIND INSTRUMENTS 277 ^b\ ^ ^ 1 ^ T i^ V r I- i^--i F~-i I^ ^C -I k -I C j For the first eight bars the phrase which begins with a leap of a twelfth is in the foreground ; clarinet, horn, and oboe each taking a share in bringing it into prominence. But the smooth arpeggio figure allotted first to the bassoon, and later to the bassoon and horn in octaves, has a graceful shape which contributes greatly to the general effect, whilst the sustained chords on the piano, though unobtrusive, have their own importance. The last four bars are splendidly devised. The three well-defined factors are the staccato quavers on the wood- wind, the slurred crotchets of the piano octaves (which move in a contrary direction), and the rhythmically repeated E flats on the horn, which bind the whole passage together. It is instructive to notice that the staccato quavers are arranged so that the clarinet and bassoon play in sixths and the oboe adds colour by doubling the clarinet in the higher octave. No better example of the application of the oft-commended three- part construction could be given than this delightful specimen, of the pure art of Mozart, whose delicate fancy seems ever to be guided and tempered by unerring judgment, the whole process appearing unconscious, inevitable, consentaneous. 278 CHAMBER MUSIC Amongst composers of later date who have written with some success for wind and piano is Eubinstein, who in his Quintet (Op. 55) has chosen to utilise the flute in place of the oboe. He does not hesitate, when occasion demands, to use the clarinet, horn, and bassoon in ordinary three-part fashion, but wisely recognises that the flute is separate from these, and can seldom form the top voice of four-part harmony unless it is written for very high. More often it has some decorations of its own to add to the design, as in this passage from the Scherzo, of which the wind parts only are here given : — EX. 266. Allegro assai. li* - 1 ~=i — 1" »rr t' =pFfr- Clarinet f^> y'^fj =P=f=F= 1* 1* f- r r r ■' IN A. t^)"" ^ -^ / , v^ =r=^f=i^ "f — T — r~ r °r r i' ^ ' A- 1 1 — -1 — c — 1 — -C — J — 1 — ■^ »f. — y. r r ^^^^ rrr ^^^- "*" \?- SU L The flute is, of course, quite clearly heard above the held chord, for it plays in a telling part of its register. One may WIND INSTRUMENTS 279 note also that the bassoon is playing the upper notes of its compass which blend well with the horn tones, and also that the clarinet part is marked mf whilst the bassoon and horn play pmno. In writing for wind in combination different markings of this kind may be made to help towards the obtaining of a proper balance, though they will not save a badly distributed score. In the far more skilfully worked distributions of Mozart and Beethoven, the values are so truthfully understood and gauged that such devices are un- necessary, and practically never brought into play. For another and far easier method of surmounting (or perhaps escaping) difficulties the student may consult the charming caprice on Danish and Eussian themes by Saint- Saens. This is scored for flute, oboe, clarinet, and piano, and consists for the most part of solo-writing, the wind instruments taking turns in displaying their qualities. Very little actual use is made of the three in combination, except towards the end, where the melodies are given very much in unison (or octaves) and in dialogue passages loosely strung together, the piano accompanying. It forms, nevertheless, a fine lesson in the art of lightening one's texture, and in delicacy of treatment. The piano is most daintily provided for, and, if the interest of the music it plays is slender, there is a certain kind of superficial charm in the sparkling accompaniment which saves the work from any suspicion of dullness. When flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, and bassoon are used by themselves, without support from keyboard or strings, some fresh exigencies present themselves, and the composer who can manage to construct a successful and judiciously balanced work for this quintet combination may be said to have mastered the most difficult of all problems in Chamber Music. One may assert without hesitation that ordinary five-part harmony for mixed" wind instruments can never, under any circumstances, be other than unpracticable and disastrously ineffective. In order to show how hopeless such a procedure would be, the author has ventured to arrange the first two bars of the National Anthem in this fashion, and to set alongside his 28o CHAMBER MUSIC illustration two variants of the same in which an attempt has been made to amend the errors : — Fldte EX. 267. Bassoon, ^g ^^m At (a) may he seen an ordinary dull and blameless piece of ' harmony-exercise ' writing in five parts, which would sound perfectly smooth and well-balanced if sung by a choir of mixed voices with the third and fourth lines allotted to the tenors, divisi. But what would be the effect of this if played as WIND INSTRUMENTS 281 arranged above? The melody would probably not be heard at all, for the flute is playing quite weak notes, whilst the oboe and clarinet emit strongly coloured sounds, the one nasal and impossible to subdue, the other rich, deep, and full-toned. And not only would there be no tonal balance achieved, but the fact that all the instruments play their notes without slurs and in the same rhythm would further tend to obscure the issue and result in mere ' puffiness ' and noise. If the parts were arranged as at (6) a vastly different effect would be secured. The melody would then be quite prominent, for the flute not only plays in a more suitable part of its compass, but its notes are doubled by the oboe an octave below. The clarinet and bassoon move in a satisfactory two- part arrangement: the horn has slower notes which are far more suited to it, and fulfil the necessary functions of filling- in and holding smoothly together : the differences in the slurring make themselves clearly felt, and aid towards a more natural statement of the musical phrase. At (c) a more fanciful a,rrangement is indulged in. With- out pretending to be an apt rendering of this particular tune, it provides the flute and clarinet with passages more obviously suited to them, and allows the melody to be given in the best part of the oboe's compass, doubled by the horn in the lower octave. The bassoon notes, too, are sweeter and less assertive, and the rests serve to lighten the fabric. As regards clearness of melody and bala,nce there is little to choose between these last two arrangements, but the effect in each case is totally different, both in colouring and style. If the student is anxious to exercise his skill in writing for a quintet of wind instruments, he may be advised, before attempting a prolonged composition, to write the whole of such a tune as the National Anthem for wind alone, trying different experiments in part-distribution,cross-phrasings,etc. He might, for instance, commence as at (b) and as at (c), and continue each example, trying to maintain the special constructive features and manner of the opening throughout, whilst never forgetting the value of intelligent punctuation, and the necessity for dietailed markings regarding phrasing and accent. 282 CHAMBER MUSIC He will probably find the occupation a most fascinating one, and, if he is quick and of an inventive turn of mind, he will soon discover that the opportunities of. ringing the changes and indulging in quaint contrasts are greater and far more frequent than might at first be supposed. It would be a vain task to attempt to tabulate even the. most generally useful devices available, and the three final illustrations of this chapter are set forth for inspection merely in the hope that the suggestive methods exemplified in each case may prove helpful to writers who feel timid in embarking upon a task containing so many pitfalls. The skill and confidence displayed in the Quintet in E flat for wind alone, by Fritz Kauffmann (Op. 40), must, at all events, command some measure of admiration. In the extract from the first movement, given below, the oboe may be seen standing out prominently as a solo instrument, reinforced after four bars by the dear high notes of the flute. The murmuring broken-chord figures given to the clarinet — ■ too widely separated from the main material to obscure it — ■ make an excellent and imobtrusive middle substance, while, the smoothly curved bassoon paj-t and the slow pianissimo horn notes are alike interesting and quite satisfactory as support. EX. 268. Allegro am moio. Flute. Oboe. Glarihet IH B FLAT. HOBNIH Eflat. Bassoon. i ^^ Solo. ^ PP^^ r-f^ ^-J^H^ P^ ^^ ^ WIND INSTRUMENTS 283 More fragile in build, but none the less deft and sure in workmanship, is a charming " Aubade," by Adrien Barthe, in which the flute has a very brilliant and agile part. At the very beginning one must be struck with the simplicity of the design and the grateful nature of the writing, and may note how much of the effect is due to the plentiful use of rests. Flute. Oboe. ATidanfino coti moio. EX. 269. HOBH IN D. Bassooit. 284 CHAMBER MUSIC The flute and clarinet arpeggios are delightful: so is the entry of the oboe and bassoon in tenths at the fifth bar, and, given neat clear playing, the effect of the whole passage would be unmistakably arresting. Later in the work there are some clever instances of the use of melody and accompaniment, one of which may be briefly noted, since this is a fresh problem which might present great difficulty to a beginner. Amtanttno. Flute. Horn ihD. Basboon. ti-J WIND INSTRUMENTS 285 The music speaks for itself. One may point out, how- ever, the special usefulness of the holding notes of the horn, which prevent the clarinet and bassoon figures of accompani- ment from sounding disjointed and scrappy, and the careful accentuation of the flute and oboe duet, upon which (as much as upon the actual notes of the melody itself) the bright effect of the whole episode depends. It is much to be regretted that wind ensemble music is out of fashion. If it cannot be denied that a programme consisting entirely of wind music engenders a certain feeling of monotony, the unwonted neglect by the givers of chamber concerts of so much that is beautiful is to be deplored. In earlier days things were different, and some of us may recall how, in his quaint chronicles, Samuel Pepys testifies to the delights of the sweet ' wind musick ' which he heard at a performance of " The Virgin Martyr." " It ravished me," he wrote, " and did wrap up my soul ... it made me really sick, just as I had formerly been when in love with my wife." The recent attempts that have been made to revive interest in the subject in this country have not met with the success they deserve, which casts the blame conveniently upon that long-suffering target • for abuse, the Eritish public. But, if demand creates supply, supply — at least in artistic matters — has been known to stimulate demand. So that if the dis- tinguished composers of the hour were to turn their attention more frequently to the writing of such works as those re- viewed in this chapter, a pleasant fashion of ancient days might see wholesome revival, and an unfamiliar luxury take its deserved place amongst the quieter joys of life. CHAPTER IX. THE LAEGER COMBINATIONS. Retrospections and Prospects of Development. The task of critically surveying Chamber Music in its most usual forms is now all but accomplished, though something yet remains to be said regarding the management of the larger combinations before the scheme of this treatise can be con- sidered sufficiently comprehensive. A few general observations, supplemented by some illus^ trations of an exemplary description, will suffice. If the composer essays to combine the various varieties of wind instruments, usiiig a pair of eacli kind, the' methods he will adopt will be precisely those which are deemed suitable for orchestral music, and he may be referred to the many existing text-books upon instrumentation for information and advice. It may be said, in, general, that the more separate forces one gathers together, the more indistinct becomes the border-line which divides what is truly adapted for the chamber from what is foreign to it in spirit. There are certain works, how- ever, such as the Septet of Beethoven (Op. 20) and the Octet of Schubert (Op. 166), which remain tolerably faithful to the principles so frequently enunciated in these pages, inasmuch as they do not depend for their success upon any extensive doubling of parts, and allow of a delicate interplay of ideas which might be lost or obscured in a large concert hall. For the satisfactory rendering of each of these works a company of accomplished solo players is needed, who shall play into each other's hands, and give and take, much as the performers of a string-quartet are accustomed to do. THE LARGER COMBINATIONS 287 At the same time, when wind and strings are combined in this way they sound like a miniature orchestra, and many of the effects which are produced on a larger scale in orchestral writing may be drawn upon to a considerable extent in the conception and . general setting-out of a septet or octet. The style of writing for the strings, for instance, is, as a rule, far less polyphonic and complex than in ordinary chamber works, and passages in the nature of mere accompaniment are morie readily admissible; wind and strings may also be used occasionally in one mass together, particularly in the ' tuttis,' where broad outlines are frequently demanded. At the same time the processes adopted, however similar, can never be quite identical. It is absolutely essential to remember that the tone produced by four or five string players is, in quality and body, very unlike that attained by a large concourse of performers in a stringed orchestra, and the composer who forgets this will not only perpetrate bad Chamber Music, but music which is top-heavy and ill-proportioned, and therefore useless for all practical purposes, though it may look very pretty on paper. The practice of adding a piano part to these large com- binations of instruments can scarcely he recommended. One may recall that writers such as Hummel, Spohr, Kalkbrenner, Moscheles, and Onslow wrote septets in which the piano participated, and that these works were all famous in their day, when the vogue of artificial and ' flowery ' music was at its height. The fact is that the piano does not fall very easily into any clearly defined place in the scheme of such work if it is serious and important in intention, being either worse than useless when tending to merely thicken and muddle the total effect, or else irritatingly predominant beyond its deserts. According to hoary tradition, such compositions as septets and octets are generally vastly longer than chamber works in which fewer performers are engaged. The famous examples of Beethoven and Schubert have each six movements, and each contains a long set of variations, and a Minuet in addition to a Scherzo. Perhaps it was felt that if the trouble was taken to get so many accomplished performers together it was well to make the most of them, but it is hard to see why the duration 288 CHAMBER MUSIC of any chamber work should be made to exceed that of an average symphony, and in modern times there is a decided tendency to get away from length of any kind (even the " heavenly " variety associated with Schubert), and it would be unwise for a composer of to-day to follow the example of these two works in this particular direction. Nevertheless, in all o^her respects, better models could not be found for the student who is ambitious to excel in works of this calibre. Take Beethoven's Septet, for instance. If we examine only one of the developments of the principal subject of the first movement, EX. 271. Allegro con brio. P VlOUH. we shall find immediately a true understanding of the delicate adjustment of the instruments in a passage which is decidedly orchestral in manner without being in the least so in technique. CLARINET' IN B FLAT. BAS900H, Horn IN E FLAT. Violin. Viola. 'Cello. Bass. m^iu^-^ M Allegro con trio. ^^- ^72. PP PP PP 5il=p= ^^^=^^ f f r f I - 1 m -I I T I— i , r 1^-*- ^ r"P4 r^^^ ^^^^^-p^^^ t~^ ^m" THE LARGER COMBINATIONS 289 An examination of this will show how chamber scoring may differ from orchestral scoring in a pianissimo ' tutti.' The persistent B flat of the horn and the doubling of this two octaves higher on the violin are dominant features of the page, and one may note (in the playful use of the first four notes of the original subject) how the viola adds the middle octave to the figures of the clarinet and bassoon, which play two octaves apart. The utilisation of the wind on the unaccented beats against the strings on the accents (in the last three bars) is, of course, a familiar device in orchestral work, but the application of it as it stands here is very refined and dainty. In short, the orchestra is suggested without any attempt at actual imitation. In the Finale of the same work, when the wood-wind instru- ments take the bright boyish tune which forms the main theme from the hands of the violinist, we may see the string players employed for a space as accompanists, violin and viola playing staccato quavers an octave apart, and the 'cello and T 290 CHAMBER MUSIC double-bass (helped by the horn in longer notes) giving the emphasis necessary to the lilt of the music. EX. 273. Olabinet IN B FLAT. Bassoon. THE LARGER COMBINATIONS 291 After four bars one may observe that the violin takes up the task of doubling the clarinet melody in place of the bassoon, and the latter transfers its energies to a continuation of the staccato accompaniment. At the same point the horn part compels a measure of the listener's attention without obstructing the flow of the chief melody, which remains clearly paramount throughout. Passing to the octet of Schubert, a work in every way more mature and advanced, one may first note the greatly increased importance of the string element caused by the addi- tion of a second violin to the score. In the opening bars of the introductory Adagio the held notes for the three wind instruments correspond to a sustained unison for the whole of the wind in an orchestral score, and balance with the quintet in the same way that the complete wind-band might do with a large body of strings. The efifect of the low pedal note of the double-bass, occupying an isolated position two octaves below the rest, should also be mentally realised. EX. 274. 292 CHAMBER MUSIC This eminently symphonic scheme is fully maintained when the almost awesome solemnity of the Adagio gives place to a forcible Allegro, for which, by means of rhythmic anticipatory figures, one has been inwardly prepared. The score should first be enjoyed with ears alone, and then studied closely, for it is full of most rare beauty, and the flashes of Schubert's inspiration are so continuous that there are no moments where the music seems other than intensely and luminously alive. It would be idle to set down in black and white, as examples of mere skill, passages which obviously owe everything to their 'first fine careless rapture,' but where the impulse is recaptured in repetitions which are far more than mere dupli- cations, the mastery which holds the reins of fancy may yield valuable secrets to those who temper admiration with a not unnatural studious inquisitiveness. If we can bring the cool, calm reflection of the study chair to the brief episode printed on the next two pages, we shall at least learn some of the lessons that a great master alone can teach. THE LARGER COMBINATIONS 293 It is a marvellous passage. There is not a note misplaced, and the numerous separate details which combine to produce the total effect are in every instance indispensable to the design. Viewed as a whole, the first four bars, with their diminuendo, are planned to lead up to an especially beautiful entry of an important subject on the bassoon. But, from the merely technical aspect, the way in which every instrument is fitted with what suits it, the perfect equilibrium of the part- writing, the variety of motion, the use of rhythmic figures on the viola and horn and in the descending bass, and the coup- ling of the clarinet and second violin with holding chords — these are the things which set one marvelling at the patient, practical skill which, when it guides the hand of genius, can lend so much additional value to work already vivid with im- pulse and inspiration. EX. 275. Allegro. dim. 294 CHAMBER MUSIC One final quotation will serve to show how direct contrasts of tone can be well achieved in an octet by means of wind answering strings in two separate groups. The bars chosen are those which open the Minuet, and sound so strong, and forcible after the easy grace of the Andante con Variazioni which immediately precedes them. Here it is quite evident that had Schubert had two addi- tional wind instruments at his command he would have disposed his parts somewhat differently. But the contrast is secured without difficulty, for the viola and 'cello, which assist in completing the harmony of the answering phrase, supply tones which blend well with the wind, and the balance is in no sense upset. THE LARGER COMBINATIONS 295 EX. 276. Allegretto. 'Cello and Bass. 296 CHAMBER MUSIC The temptation to quote further from a masterpiece which can teach so much must be resisted, lest the attention devoted to this branch of composition should seem disproportionate to its importance as Chamber Music. What Schubert has done so superbly is little likely to be done again. In these days the orchestra is the field for those whose chief skill is for colour designs, and it must be a large and imposing one if it is to give effect to the modern love of sweeping and impetuous sound. The ' Chamber Orchestra ' will attract less and less, for those who, tired of excessive energy and bustle, are attracted to retreat into a haven of musical peace will find more true refreshment in the quieter forms of trio, quartet, or quintet than in any combinations that may faintly suggest the tumult from which escape is sought. After surveying the subject from so many standpoints, both broad and minute, one is tempted to shirk anything in the nature of a formal summing-up. Yet there remains, in con- cluding a work abounding in so much detailed criticism as the present volume, a certain fear le§t some of the larger and more elemental aspects of the subject may, at times, have fallen in danger of being obscured. A treatise of this kind may, therefore, need a special summing-up, the function of which is not to reiterate details, but to gather the chief ideas together, as it were, into one focus, so that the reader may be prevented from seeing things in false perspective, and carrying off disproportionate or distorted impressions. To the objection that small details are of small importance there is an historical answer — small details make perfection, and perfec- tion is of great importance. At the same time such details must fall into their places, and one must keep constantly in remembrance the big main purpose to which they contribute. However great the natural talent of a composer may be, he will fail in producing truly interesting Chamber Music unless he has acquired the power of developing his themes. A com- poser such as Grieg, for instance, who was almost impotent in this respect, was not, with all his rare gifts, a successful RETROSPECTIONS 297 composer of full-fledged chamber works, though he excelled as a writer of airy trifles, and showed picturesque imagination in his fine Pianoforte Concerto and in a certain type of orchestral composition. On the other hand, his contemporary Brahms, the whole trend of whose ideas lay in the direction of the thoughtful and intellectual phases of art, was one of the greatest writers of Chamber Music the world has ever seen. If this proves anything, it proves that an underlying seriousness of disposition is almost an essential to the Chamber Music writer. It is not denied that light music is occasion- ally quite legitimate in this branch of art, but there can be no exhibition of actual levity or frivolity without creating a sense exactly opposite to that which is intended by the composer — a sense of mental suffering in those listeners who understand the dignity of Chamber Music, and come in the right frame of mind to hear it. Moreover, any indulgence in affectation, any insincerity or pose, is immediately detected at a chamber concert and instinctively condemned, whilst it may pass muster, and even create a certain measure of interest, when decked out with some of the flamboyant colourings that the orchestra affords. It cannot be denied that most of the advice offered to the would-be composer in this book has a general and not a special application. The author has on different occasions, and in different connections, condemned certain technical devices as unsuitable to Chamber Music ; but the alert musician will, if he chooses, easily be able to confront him with instances of the successful use of these same unsuitable devices by great composers. One must never forget that there are exceptions to be reckoned with at all times, and one cannot even claim that they always ' prove the rule ' : more often, indeed, they prove the total inadequacy of rules in any sphere where the play of imagination and personal emotion occupies considerable sway. Such rules as may be deemed useful to a beginner must be deduced from great works of art of the past as a whole. But many great works of art, particularly those of our own day, are incapable of analysis, and that is why rules can be, at 298 CHAMBER MUSIC best, only partial guides, and in almost every instance a little behind the times. Still one builds upon what is gone before, upon what is firmly established and universally sure, in order that one may not build upon sand. No prescriptions can be made out for the things which count most of all, even if a pupil can be taught, to a certain extent, how to avoid writing passages which do not sound well. After all, as Mr. E. H. Walthew says in one of his admir- able lectures, " in chamber music it is not only the sound of the music that is important ; equally so is the primal energy of idea of which the played work can be but an incomplete expression." And this very primal energy of idea is exactly what it is impossible to analyse or teach. It is one of the mysteries of art that " one man wUl write a piece of music accurately balanced, elaborately developed, and quite good in every way so far as we can see, and yet his work will leave us utterly unmoved; whereas another man with a few simple, and what would seem obvious, musical ideas will arrest our attention at once." Again, stress has herein been laid upon the unsuitability of making use of chamber-music forms for the purpose of expressing definite pictorial episodes, and there too the con- struction placed upon such advice may easily be too narrow. One condemns the adoption of a " programme " only in a certain way. Of course every idea is dependent upon outward circum- stances, and even the strictest abstract music is, in a manner, non-musical. Abstract music in the sense of music standing apart from " humanity, its life and its aspirations " is inconceiv- able. If Chamber Music be the outcome of mundane ideas, and is expressed in a suitable form, nobody can quarrel with it ; but if it be an attempt to re-create those ideas in the mind of every listener, it is attempting something unattainable, and the mere struggle to express things in such an obvious way that every listener shall comprehend them in a concrete sense will at once debase or destroy the language-function of music, which is a quite separate language-function to that of literature, or that of the pictorial and plastic arts. PROSPECTS OF DEVELOPMENT 299 The present writer would be the last to affirm that Chamber Music should be regarded as unprogressive, or that the tendencies of the most modern species of symphonic writing may not exercise great sway and influence, indirectly, in other branches of musical work. There are no absolute barriers. But the art of the painter of small water-colours is different from that of the painter of great historical or didactic canvases. If the composer of a quartet feels, as he most assuredly will, that his four strings cannot give the same vivid impression of tangible things that the full orchestra can be made to convey, it will be better, not only for him but for the honour and dignity of quartet literature, if he will transfer his energies to a more expansive region. Chamber Music offers a wide field for the idealist, and for the composer whose emotions are controlled by intellect, but a far narrower one for the worshipper of merely sensuous beauty, and for the writer whose passionate nature cannot easily be curbed or restrained. The fact that certain composers of the ultra-emotional school have undoubtedly created a few perman- ent and living chamber works in no way alters the truth of this very sound generalisation. At most it proves that there is scope for a musical genius of any stamp, even in the sphere least likely to afford a full realisation of his art. We should remember also the peculiar intimacy and the magnetic influence of fine music written for only a few picked performers. Chamber Music gives greater intellectual pleasure to executants than any other kind. We write it as much for the players' enjoyment as for the satisfaction of the listeners. And this enjoyment can be, and is, communicated to the hearers, who participate in a remarkable degree in that peculiar pleasure which the interpreters derive from their task. Per- formers are generally the best judges of music and the most reliable critics. If a work has merit they will, almost invari- ably, be the first to recognise ^t, and their sympathy and understanding will be one of the greatest helps a composer can ever know. Finally, it is greatly to be hoped that the predomination of quite old-fashioned examples amongst the musical illustrations 300 CHAMBER MUSIC of this book will not be taken as an indication that the author desires to promulgate reactionary ideas in music. Nothing could be further from the truth, as the frequent inclusion of extracts from, absolutely modern works worthy of emulation should in itself be sufficient to prove. It is probably impos- sible for any composer to hegin exactly where the composer before him left off. Sir Charles Stanford, indeed, has some very emphatic counsels to give on this point.^ "What a century evolved in its development," he says, speaking of the study of orchestration, " each composer must evolve in minia- ture for himself." Whatever we may think of this advice as applied to the subject under present discussion, we may be sure that Mozart has a great deal to teach us, especially in the field of quartet music of which he was so great a master; and we may well feel that, taken as an example side by side with the great moderns who have confessedly learnt so much from him, he may still yield us many of his secrets without hampering us or holding us back from our hot pursuit of the many modern problems before us. Who shall dare to prophesy what the future of Chamber Music may be ? Beginning with the lightest and most trivial types of dances devised for the evening amusement of over- dined monarchs and nobles, it gradually passed, thanks to the mastery and musicianship of Haydn and Mozart, into a sphere of high intellectual accomplishment and most pure beauty. Tinged in later years with more dramatic expression, and sounding the utmost depth of passion and emotion of which the great Beethoven was capable, it is now sharing in those tangles of conflicting intricacies that a strenuous and complex age is translating from its life into its art. The period in which we live is probably one of transition, but it is a period of activity — and, as in physical life so in art, activity is a sure sign of vital existence. To return absolutely to earlier methods, ignoring the swift current of the stream of progress, is unthinkable. Even if destined to be of small ^Musical Composition, Sir Charles V. Stanford. (Maomillan & Co., and Stainer and Bell & Co.) PROSPECTS OF DEVELOPMENT 301 service in furthering the developments which crowd so quickly one upon the other, the composer must live in his own age, and learn to find for himself the heauty and the worth that survive, and then hold fast to them. If he is left far behind, or lost in the turmoil that surrounds him, he may yet feel that he has contributed his small quota to the general movement forward, and, still undaunted, include amongst his prayers those fine words of Edmund Gosse — May I in patience infinite Attend the beauty that must be, And, though it slays me, welcome it. INDEX. Albert! bass, 64. AUegri (quartet), 12. Altmann, Ka/m/mermuaih-Literatur, 146. American composers, 70 (footnote). Aquarium, Westminster, 174. Armide (Gluck), 249. Aubade for Wind Quintet (Barthe), 283-5. Augener's edition, 202. Aus meinem Leben (quartet by Sme- tana), 70-4. Bach (Carl Philip Emanuel), 2, 1S3. Bach (J. S.), 115, 153; suites for 'ceUo, 176. Barthe (Adrien), Aubade for Wind Quintet, 283-5. Bassoon, 246, 268-73, 275-85 ; with clarinet, 270, 289. Beethoven, 1st Symphony, 12 (foot- note) ; string quartets, 20-46, 64, 65, 67, 80, 81, 90-5, 98-100, 123 ; 5th Symphony, 40, 42 ; 9th Sym- phony, 42; string trios, 117, 119- 23 ; string quintets, 135-6 ; octet for wind instruments, 136 (foot- note) ; sonatas, piano and violin, 157-60 ; viola passages, 167 ; sona- tas, piano and 'cello, 175-7 ; trios, piano and strings, 190-4, 202 ; quartets, piano and strings, 213 ; quintet, piano and wind, 248, 274 ; serenade, flute, violin and viola, 249-51 ; trio, two oboes and English horn, 253 ; horn music, 263-4 ; sextet, 264; septet, 248, 269-70; 286-91 ; characteristics, 300. Boccherini, quintets, 130. Borodin, quartets, 67, 76-8, 89 ; use of harmonics, 89. Borsdorf (Adolf), 264 (footnote). Bouch^e, see Closed notes. Bowen (York), 169 ; sonatas, piano and viola, 172-3 ; suite for flute, 252. Brahms, treatment of viola, 58-9 string quartets, 58-9, 67-70, 101 influence on Herzogenberg, 124 string quintets, 138-9 ; string sextets, 139-43 ; sonatas, piano and violin, 160-5 ; sonatas, piano and 'cello, 180-1 ; trios, piano and strings, 201-9, 212 ; quartets, piano and strings, 213-21 ; quintet, piano and strings, 229-31 ; quintet, clari- net and strings, 258-60 ; sonatas, piano and clarinet, 260-1 ; trio for piano, violin and horn, 264-6 ; characteristics, 297. Bridge (Frank), phantasy quartet, piano and strings, 223-6. Bruckner, 3. Canon, in C6sar Franck's sonata, 166 ; in Schubert's Trio in E flat, 196. 'Cello, see Violoncello. Chalumeau, 257. Chamber orchestra, 296. Cherubini, quartets, 49-51, 55. Choice of key (in string trio), 128. Chopin, 202. Chords, see Double-stopping. Clarinet, 246, 256-61, 272-3, 275-85, 291, 293 ; with horn, 267 ; with bassoon, 270, 289. Clavier, solo sonatas for, 153. Closed notes (horn), 263. Con sordino, 81-6. Contrapuntal style, 50-5. Cor Anglais, «ee English horn. Corelli, 153. INDEX 303 Counterpoint, 5, 113-14. Crooks (horn), 263, 275. Dale (Benjamin J.), suite, piano and viola, 169 ; phantasy, piano and viola, 169-72. Death and the Maiden, variations in Schubert's Quartet in D minor, 66-7. Debussy (Claude), string quartet, 57, 102. Development of Chamber Music, lectures by Walthew, 3. Dictionary of Music and Musicians, (Grove), 2, 12. D'Indy (Vincent), 262 (footnote). Dittersdorf, 55. Divertimento, string trio by Mozart, 117-19. Dohnanyi (Ernst von), serenade trio, 129 ; quintet, piano and strings, 241-3. Double-bass, 131 ; effective use of, 146-9 ; in piano quintets, 244 ; in sextets, 245. Double quartets, 142, 150-2. Double-stopping, in quartets, 101-3 ; for 'cello, 187 ; in accompaniments, 196-7 ; in trios, 204-6, 249-50. Dove-taUing, 100. Dumka (Dvofak quintet), 231-4. Dvorak, string quartets, 57, 67, 70, 72-5 ; New World Symphony, 70 (footnote) ; Terzetto (string trio), 126-7 i Quintet in G (use of double- bass), 131, 148-9 ; quintet, piano and strings, 229, 231-5. Eggar (Katharine), 252. Emerson, 5. English horn, 246, 253. Fairy Queen (PurceU), 82. Fantaaie, see Phantasy. Fantasiestiicke, Schumann trio, 200-1. Faur6 (Gabriel), sonata, piano and violin, 168 ; quartets, piano and strings, 221-3, 226. Kve-part writing, for strings, 132-4 ; for wind, 279-85. .Flageolets, see Harmonics. Flegier, trio for oboe, clarinet and fcassoon, 273-4. Flute, 246, 248-52, 272. Franok (C6sar), string quartet, 84-6 ; sonata, piano and violin, 165-8 ; quintet, piano and strings, 229, 236-9, 243. French horn, see Horn. Friskin (James), quintet, piano and strings, 243-4. Gade (Niels W.), 149. Gluck, 249. God save the King, see National Anthem. Goetz (Hermann), quintet, piano and strings, 244. Gosse (Edmund), 301. Gretohaninow, 110-11. Grieg (Edvard H.), string quartet, 91-2, 102-6 ; sonatas, piano and violin, 164 ; sonata, piano and 'cello, 181-2; characteristics, 296-7; piano- forte concerto, 297. Grove (George), 107. Grove's Dictionary of Music and Mvsicians, 2, 12. Hadow (W. H.), 64. Handel, 153. Hand horn, 262-4, 275. Harmonics, 86-90. Harmonic series (horn), 262. Harp Quartet (Beethoven), 22, 38-42. Hautboy, see Oboe. Haydn, invention of quartet, 12-13 ; string quartets, 20-22, 60-2, 64-5, 101 ; trios, piano and strings, 186 ; trios, two flutes and 'cello, 24_p ; musicianship, 300. Herzogenberg (H. von), string trios, 124-6. Holbrooke (Josef), sextet, 245 ; trio, piano, violin and horn, 266-7. Horn, 246, 262-8, 274-5, 277-85, 289- 90, 293. Hummel, 287. Humoreske, trio by Sohvmiann, 200-1. Hurlstone (W. Y.), sonata, piano and bassoon, 270-2. IdyU, flute and piano (Katharine Eggar), 252. Instrumental music, early beginnings, 2. Instrumentation, see Orchestration. 304 INDEX Ireland (John), sonata, piano and violin, 167-8. Jongen (Joseph), String Quartet in C minor, 99. Kalkbrenner, 287. Kammernmsih-Literatiiv, bibliography by Altmann, 146. Kauffmann (Fritz), quintet for wind, 282-3 Kilbum (Nicholas), The Story of Chamber Music, 2. Kjehbiel (H. E.), 70 (footnote). Kreutzer, sonata by Beethoven, 157, 158-9. Kuhlau, flute music, 248. Larger combinations, the, 286-96. Lekeu, sonata, piano and violin, 168. Locatelli, 153. Mahnconia, La, 24. Marohenbilder, piano and viola, by Sehutnann, 169. Mendelssohn, string quartets, 107-10, 113 ; Italian Symphony, 110 ; string quintets, 186-8 ; scherzos, 137-8, 150, 197-8, 249 ; octet for strings, 149-50 ; sonatas, piano and 'cello, 177-9 ; variations, piano and 'ceUo, 177-9 ; trios, piano and strings, 197-8, 202 ; quartets, piano and strings, 213 ; Midsummer Night's Dream, 249. Mendelssohnian melody, 45. Midsummer Night's Dream (Mendels- sohn), 249. Molbe, septet for strings, 146. Mosoheles, 287. Mozart, quartet -writing, 13 ; as a model, 19, 300 ; string quartets, 16-20, 22, 64, 65 ; pizzicato accom- paniment, 80 (footnote) ; Diverti- m.ento, string trio, 117-19 ; Quintet for Strings in G minor, 131-4; so- natas, piano and violin, 154-7 ; trios, piano and strings, 186, 188- 90 ; quartets, piano and strings, 213 ; quintet, piano and wind, 248, 274-7 ; ZauberflOte, 249 ; quartet, oboe and strings, 254-5 ; clarinet music, 256 ; quintet, clarinet and strings, 258 ; hom music, 263-4 ; quintet, hom and strings, 264 (foot- note). Muhlfeld, 261. Muted hom, 266-7. Mutes, use of, 81-6, 219-21. National Anthem, arranged for wind instruments, 279-81. Natural harmonics, table of, 88. Negro melodies, 70 (footnote). Newmaroh (Rosa), 210 (footnote). New World Symphony (Dvorak), 70. Nigger Quartet (Dvorak), 70 (foot- note). Oboe, 246, 252-6, 272-3, 275-7, 279-85. Octet, for wind instruments by Beethoven, 136 (footnote) ; for strings (Gade, Mendelssohn, Raff, Svendsen), 149-50 ; Schubert, 248, 286-8, 291-6. Onslow, quintets, 131 ; septet, 287. Orchestra, The, treatise by Prout, 3. Orchestral Chamber Music, 96-7, 102- 11, 143-5, 150, 194, 209-12, 236-7, 272, 287-9, 296. Orchestration, 3, 11, 19, 117-18, 286, 291 ; use of mutes in, 81-2, 86 ; use of flute in, 249. Orfeo (Gluck), 249. Paradies (Domenico), 153. Partial-tones, see Harmonics. Payne, miniature scores, 19. Pepys (Samuel), 285. Peters edition, 154. Phantasy, 48 ; for piano and viola, by Dale, 169-72 ; quartet, piano and strings, by Bridge, 223-6. Pianistio string writing, 111-13, 201. Pianoforte, with violin, 153-68 ; with viola, 168-74 ; with 'cello, 174-85 ; in trios, 186-212 ; in quartets, 212- 26 ; in quintets, 226-45 ; with wind instruments, 248, 274-9 ; with flute, 252 ; with oboe, 255 ; with clari- net, 260-1 ; with hom, 264-8 ; with bassoon, 270-2 ; inseptets, 287. Piccolo, 248. Pizzicato, 79-81 ; in sonatas for piano and violin, 160, 162 ; in sonatas for piano and 'cello, 178-9, 181 ; ar- peggios, 38-40, 208; chords, 127, 144, 160, 162, 218, 222-3, 233. INDEX 305 PonticeOo, see sul ponticeUo. Popular concerts (" Pops "), 7-8. Posthumous quartets (Beethoven) 46, 52-3, 80-1, 90-1, 92-5, 167. Prout (Professor E.), 3, 96. Puroell, 82. Quartets, strings, general principles, 11-46 ; resources and effects, 47- 95 ; counsels and warnings, 96- 115 ; for violas alone, 173-4 ; piano and strings, 212-26 ; piano and wind, 279. Quintets, strings, 130-9 ; with double- bass, 148-9 ; for piano and strings, 212-13, 226-45; clarinet and strings, by Mozart, 258 ; clarinet and strings, by Brahms, 258-60 ; piano and wind instruments, 274-9 ; wind instruments alone, 279-86. Raff, octet, 149. Rasoumowsky, quartets by Beet- hoven, 22, 24, 28, 29, 35, 37, 45, 62, 95, 98, 100, 193. Ravel (Maurice), string quartet, 78-9, 81. Reger (Max), 56, 82; string trio, 128-9 ; serenade, flute and strings, 261. Retrospections, 296-300. Rockstro (R. S.), 248. Rubinstein (Anton), quintet, piano and wind, 278-9. Saint-SaSns, quintet, piano and strings, 239-41 ; romance for flute, 262 ; septet, 262 ; caprice for piano and wind instruments, 279. Saltato bowing, 198. Saxophones, 47. Scarlatti (Domenico), 163. Schubert, string quartets, 24, 47, 48, 50, 67, 63, 66-7, 95 ; Quintet in C, 131, 134-5 ; Unfinished Symphony, 134 ; trios, piano and strings, 194-7; "Trout" Quintet, 244; octet, 248, 286-8, 291-6. Schumann, method of study, 4 ; string quartets, 66, 94, 112-13 ; sonatas, piano and violin, 160-2, 166 ; Marchenbilder, viola and piano, 169 ; trios, piano and strings, 198-202 ; Fantasiestvioke for trio, 200-1 ; quartet, piaoao and strings, 213 ; quintet, piano and strings, 213, 226-9, 242 ; romances, oboe and piano, 255. Second violin, importance of, 66-7. Septets, of saxophones, 47 ; for strings, 146 ; Beethoven, 248, 269- 70, 286-91; Saint-Saens, 262; D'Indy, 262 (footnote) ; Hummel, Kalkbreuner, Moscheles, Onslow, and Spohr, 287. Serenade, trios for strings, Dohnanyi, 129; SioigagUa, 129; for flute, violin and viola, Beethoven, 249- 61 ; Reger, 261. Sextets, strings, 139-46 ; for violas alone, 173-4 ; piano and strings, Holbrooke, 246 ; two horns and strings, Beethoven, 264. Shield (WilUam), 3. Simrock, 202. Sinigaglia (Leone), serenade trio, 129. Sketch method of quartet writing, 92-4. Smetana, string quartet, " Aus meinem Leben," 67, 70-4. Sonata-form, 2. Sonata music, 1. Sonatas, solo for clavier, 153 ; piano and violin, 163-68 ; piano and viola, 168-74 ; piano and 'cello, 174- 85 ; piano and clarinet, 260-1 ; piano and bassoon, 271-2. South Place Institute, 3. Souvenir de Florence, sextet, Tschal- kowsky, 143-6. Spohr, 13 ; double quartets, 142, 160 ; septet, 287. Stanford (C. V.), Quartet in A minor, 67 ; Quartet in G, 62 ; Miisical GorrvposiHon, 192-3, 300. St. James's Hall, 8. Strauss (Richard), 19 ; sonata, piano and 'cello, 181, 183-4. String quartets, see Quartets, strings. String quintets, see Quintets, strings. String sextets, see Sextets, strings. String trios, aee Trios, strings. Suites, piano and viola (Dale), 169 ; 'cello solo (Bach), 176 ; flute and piano (Bowen), 252. Sul ponticeUo, 90-2, 103. Svendsen, octet for strings, 160, V 3o6 INDEX TanieH, string quartets, 67. Tartini, 163. Tertis (Lionel), 169. Terzetto, string trio (Dvoifak), 126-7. Theme Buaae (Beethoven quartets. Op. 69), 28-29, 32-3. Tovey (Donald Francis), trio, piano, clarinet and horn, 267. Transposing instruments, 266-7, 263. Tremolo, 64, 91, 103. Trios, strings, constitution of, 116-18 ; strings, by Mozart, Beethoven, DvoMk, Herzogenberg, Reger, 118- 29 ; piano and strings, 186-212 ; flute and strings, 249-62; piano, violin and horn, 264-7 ; piano, clarinet and horn (Tovey), 267 ; oboe, clarinet and bassoon (Fle- gier), 273-4. Trout Quintet (Schubert), 244. Trumpet, 262. Tschaikowsky, 19 ; string quartets, 64, 67, 67, 83-4, 86 ; sextet (Sou- venir de Florence), 143-6 ; trios, piano and strings, 201, 209-12 ; I4fe and Letters of , 210 (footnote). Vaughan-Williams (Ralph), 48 (foot- note). Viola, capabilities, 14-16 ; charac- teristics, 67-9 ; harmonics, 87-8 ; with piano, 168-74. Violin, capabilities, 14-16 ; charac- teristics, 66 ; harmonics, 86-8 ; with piano, 153-68. Violoncello, capabiliti^, 14-16, 174- 85, 186-8; characteristics, 59-63; harmonics, 87-8 ; with piano, 174- 86 ; double-stopping, 187 ; com- pared with bassoon, 268, 270-1. Virgin Martyr, The, 285. Volkmann, Quartet in F minor, 99-100. Vox Humana, 92. Vreuls (Victor), sonata, piano and violin, 168. Wagner, 44, 263. Walthew (R. H.), Lectures on Cham ber Music, 3, 298. Weber, 249. Westminster Aquarium, 174. Williams (Ralph Vaughan-), 48 (foot- note). Wind instruments, 246-86. Wind quintets, 279-86. Zauberfldte (Mozart), 249. Zingarese, Rondo alia, Brahms, Quartet, piano and strings, in G minor, 216. INDEX TO MUSICAL ILLUSTRATIONS. Attwood (T.). Minuet for String Quartet, - Frontispie(}e. Bakthe (Adrien). Aubade for Five Wind Instruments, 269-70 283-4 Beethoven. String Quartet in F, Op. 18, No. 1, „ in A, Op. 18, No. 5, „ in F, Op. 59, No. 1, „ „ in E minor. Op. 59, No. 2, „ in C, Op. 59, No. 3, 26 „ „ in E flat. Op. 74, „ „ in F minor, Op. 95, „ „ in C sharp minor. Op. 131, „ „ in A minor. Op. 132, „ in F, Op. 135, „ Trio in D, Op. 9, No. 2, „ in G, Op. 9, No. 1, „ „ in C minor, Op. 9, No. 3, Sonata, piano and violin, in A, Op. 12, No. 2, „ „ „ in A, Op. 45 (Kreutzer), „ and 'cello, in F, Op. 5, No. 1, in A, Op. 69, Trio, piano and strings, in C minor. Op. 1, No. 3, „ in D, Op. 70, No. 1, „ in E flat. Op. 70, No. 2, Serenade, flute, violin and viola. Op. 25, Septet, Op. 20, BOBODIN. String Quartet in A, No. 1, ... BowBN (York). Sonata, piano and viola. No. 1, in C minor, - Brahms. String Quartet in B flat, Op. 67, „ in C minor. Op. 51, No. 1, - „ in A minor, Op. 61, No. 2, String Quintet in F, Op. 88, U2 7 13 8 23 9-16 24-28 17-25 29-35 ; 45; 86 36; 52; 98 9 27-33 37-41 34-41 42-45 46; 82 53 ; 90-1 84 93 73-4 ; 85 80-1 ; 93-4 102-3 119-20 104-5 121 106-8 121-3 145 157-8 146-7 158-9 166-7 175-6 168-9 176-7 183-4 190-1 185 192 186 193 236-8 249-50 260-1 ; 269-70 ; 271-3 288-90 70-1 ; 81 76-7 ; 89 1,64-5 172-3 52-4 ; 90 68-9 ; 101 61-2 68-9 63 69 126 138 EXAMPIES. FAGI 127 139 128-30 140-1 131 142-3 151-4 162-4 155 164 156 165 173-4 180 195-6 203 197-203 204-9 207-10 214-16 211-16 217-21 224 230-1 5 ; 247-9 258 : ; 259-60 250-1 260-1 252-6 264-6 308 MUSICAL ILLUSTRATIONS Beahms. String Quartet in G, Op. Ill, „ Sextet in B fiat, Op. 18, - „ „ in a. Op. 36, Sonata, piano and violin, in G, Op. 28, in A, Op. 100, „ „ „ in D minor, Op. 108, „ „ and 'cello, in E minor, Op. 38, Trio, piano and strings, in 0, Op. 87, „ „ „ in C minor, Op. 101, Quartet, piano and strings, in G minor. Op. 25, „ „ „ in A, Op. 26, Quintet, „ „ in F minor. Op. 34, „ clarinet and strings. Op. 115, Sonata, piano and clarinet, in P minor. Op. 20, No. 1, Trio, piano, violin and horn, in E flat. Op. 40, Bridge (Frank). Phantasy Quartet, piano and strings, in D minor, 219-21 224-6 Chebubini. String Quartet in E flat, - - - - 42 ; 44 49 ; 61 Dale (B. J.). Phantasy, piano and viola, ... - 161-3 170-1 DsBtrssY (Claude). String Quartet, - - - - „ ■ - 51 ; 91 57 ; 102 DoHNANYi (Ernst von). Quintet, piano and strings, in C minor. Op. 1, 233-4 241-3 Dvorak (Anton). String Quartet in F, Op. 96, ... Terzetto (String Trio), Op. 74, String Quintet in G, Op. 77 (with Double-bass), Quintet, piano and strings, in A, Op. 81, Paube (Gabriel). Quartet, piano and strings, in C minor. Op. 15, 217-18 221-3 Pleqieb. Trio, oboe, clarinet and bassoon, in B minor, 263 273 Pbanck (C^sar). String Quartet in D, - 78-9 84-5 Sonata, piano and violin, in A, 157-9 165-7 Quintet, piano and strings, in F minor, 228-30 236-8 Fbiskin (James). Quintet, piano and strings, in C minor. Op. 1, 235 243-4 God save the King, see National Anthem. 65-6 ; 68-9 72-3 ; 75 112-14 126-7 134-8 148-9 225-7 232-5 MUSICAL ILLUSTRATIONS 309 Gbetchaninow. String Quartet, EXAMPLES. fAGB 98 uo-u 92-4 103-6 175-7 181-2 6 21 56 62 58 64-5 89 101 109 124 110-11 125-6 Grieg. String Quartet in G minor, - Sonata, piano and 'cello, in A minor. Op. 36, Habmonios, Tables of, .... gg.g Haydn. String Quartet in G, Op. 54, No. 1, 5 ; 55 20-1 ; 60-1 „ „ in D minor, Op. 76, No. 2, „ in C, Op. 20, No. 2, » „ in B minor. Op. 64, No. 2, „ in B flat. Op. 71, No. 1, Hebzogenberg (H. von). String Trio in F, Op. 27, No. 2, - „ in A, Op. 27, No. 1, - . - Holbrooke (Josef). Trio, piano, violin and horn, - - . 257 266 HUELSTONE (W. Y.). Sonata, piano and bassoon, in F, - - - 262 271-2 Ibelanii (John). Sonata, piano and violin, in D minor,- - 160 167-8 JoNGEN (Joseph). String Quartet in C minor, ... - 87 99 KAurrMANN (Fritz). Quintet, for wind alone, in E flat. Op. 40, - 268 282-3 Mendelssohn. String Quartet in F minor. Op. 80, in D, Op. 44, No. 1, in E flat. Op. 44, No. 3, „ Quintet in A, Op. 18, Sonata, piano and 'cello, in B flat. Op. 45, in D, Op. 58, Variations „ „ Op. 17, - Trio, piano and strings, in C minor. Op. 66, - Mozart. Minuet (Attwood), rewritten by, - String Quartet in G, No. 1, Divertimento (string trio) in E flat. String Quintet in G minor, Sonata, for piano and violin, in A, No. 1, inC, No. 2, - in F, No. 9, in E flat. No. 16, 95-6 108 97 109 100 113 123-5 136-7 170 178 171 178-9 172 179 191 197-8 Frontispiece. 1-4 16-19 101 118-19 117-21 131-4 140 155 141 155 142 156 143 156 EXAMPLES. FAQB 144 157 180-2 188-9 241-3 254-5 244 ; 246 258 264-5 274-7 76 82-3 115-16 128-9 239 251 310 MUSICAL ILLUSTRATIONS MOZAHT. Sonata, for piano and violin, in E flat. No. 12, Trio, piano and strings, in G, Quartet, oboe and strings, „ clarinet and strings, in A, Quintet, piano and wind, in E flat. National Anthem. Opening bars of, arranged for wind quintet, in three ways, - - 267 280 Ravbi. (Mavuice). String Quartet in F, 72 ; 75 78-9 ; 81 Begeb (Max). String Quartet in D minor. Op. 74, - „ Trio, Op. 776, Serenade, flute, violin and viola, Op. 77 a, RtrBiNSTEiN (Anton). Quintet, piano and wind, .... 266 278 Saint-Saens. Quintet, piano and strings, in A minor. Op. 14, Romance, piano and flute, - Schubert. String Quartet in D minor. Op. Posth., „ „ in A minor, Op. 29, » - „ Quintet in C, Op. 163, Trio, piano and strings, in B flat, Op. 99, „ in E flat. Op. 100, Octet, Op. 166, - Schumann. String Quartet in A minor. Op. 41, No. 1, - in F, Op. 41, No. 2, Sonata, piano and violin, in A minor. Op. 105, „ in D, Op. 121, Trio, piano and strings, in D minor. Op. 63, - Fantasiestiicke, piano and strings, Op. 88 (Humoreske), 194 Quintet, piano and strings, in E flat. Op. 44, Smetana. String Quartet in E minor (Aus meinem Leben), - - . 64 ; 67 71 ; 74 Spohk. Double Quartet in Q minor. Op. 136, - . 139 151 Stanford (C. V.). String Quartet in A minor. Op. 45, - - 49 57 „ in G, Op. 44, - . 57 62-3 231-2 239-41 240 252 43; 60 50 ; 66-7 69 65-6 122 135 187-9 194-6 190 197 274-6 291-5 48 55 99 112 148 160 149-50 160-1 192-3 198-200 3), 194 200-1 222-3 227-9 MUSICAL ILLUSTRATIONS 311 Strauss (Richard). examples. pads Sonata, piano and 'cello, in F, Op. 6, - - 178-9 183-4 TovEY (Donald Francis). 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