String Quintet (Bruckner)
Encyclopedia
Anton Bruckner
's String Quintet in F major, WAB
112 was written in 1879 at the request of Joseph Hellmesberger, Sr.
and dedicated to Duke Max Emanuel of Bavaria
. Like Mozart's six String Quintets, Bruckner's is scored for two violin
s, two viola
s and a cello
.
It is in four movements:
At first the Scherzo was third rather than second, as in most of Bruckner's symphonies.
The first three movements were premiered by Winkler Quartet with Josef Schalk joining on second viola on November 17, 1881 in Vienna. The first edition was published in 1884 by Albert Gutmann of Vienna, who didn't pay Bruckner any money for it. However, Bruckner made some small adjustments to the piece even after publication. It wasn't until 1885 that the Hellmesberger Quartet
played it with Max Mustermann joining on second viola.
Hellmesberger found the Scherzo too difficult, so Bruckner wrote an Intermezzo (WAB 113) in the same key to replace it. In concerts today, however, the original Scherzo is usually used instead of the Intermezzo, and on recordings the Intermezzo is usually included as an additional track. Also, the first edition included metronome markings that didn't come from Bruckner, namely: Gemäßigt = 72; Schnell = 138; Adagio = 56; Lebhaft bewegt = 144.
Duke Emanuel was pleased by the composition and gave Bruckner a diamond pin. In all, there were 23 performances of the Quintet in Bruckner's lifetime.
Bruckner biographer Derek Watson finds the work "by no means a 'symphony for five strings' and it never stretches the quintet medium beyond its capabilities, save perhaps for the last seventeen bars of the finale, where he [Bruckner] is thinking too much in orchestral terms." Robert Simpson
, on the other hand, also finds the first movement coda "a little ludicrously orchestral," but overall "only the Finale of the Quintet is not fully satisfactory as a piece of composition," in his assessment, because "Bruckner is still absorbed in the problem of the symphonic finale of his own peculiar stamp, and forgets that the tonal scale of five string instruments is unsuitable for such an architecture."
Anton Bruckner
Anton Bruckner was an Austrian composer known for his symphonies, masses, and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-German Romanticism because of their rich harmonic language, complex polyphony, and considerable length...
's String Quintet in F major, WAB
Werkverzeichnis Anton Bruckner
The Werkverzeichnis Anton Bruckners is a thematic catalogue of the music of Anton Bruckner compiled by Renata Grasberger. Grasberger did not include any unfinished compositions nor lost works. Lost works, sketches, etc. were added afterwards...
112 was written in 1879 at the request of Joseph Hellmesberger, Sr.
Joseph Hellmesberger, Sr.
Josef Hellmesberger, Sr. was an Austrian violinist, conductor, and composer.Born in Vienna, he was the son of musician and pedagogue, Georg Hellmesberger, Sr. , was taught violin by his father at the Vienna Conservatoire. Hellmesberger hails from a family of notable musicians including: brother,...
and dedicated to Duke Max Emanuel of Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
. Like Mozart's six String Quintets, Bruckner's is scored for two violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
s, two viola
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
s and a cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
.
It is in four movements:
- Gemäßigt, F majorF majorF major is a musical major scale based on F, consisting of the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat . It is by far the oldest key signature with an accidental, predating the others by hundreds of years...
, 3/4 - Scherzo: Schnell, D minorD minorD minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. In the harmonic minor, the C is raised to C. Its key signature has one flat ....
, Trio: Langsamer, E-flat major, both 3/4 - Adagio, G-flat major, common timeCommon Time"Common Time" is a science fiction short story written by James Blish. It first appeared in the August 1953 issue of Science Fiction Quarterly and has been reprinted several times: in the 1959 short-story collection Galactic Cluster; in The Testament of Andros ; in The Penguin Science Fiction...
- Finale: Lebhaft bewegt, F minorF minorF minor is a minor scale based on F, consisting of the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. The harmonic minor raises the E to E. Its key signature has four flats ....
to F major, common time
At first the Scherzo was third rather than second, as in most of Bruckner's symphonies.
The first three movements were premiered by Winkler Quartet with Josef Schalk joining on second viola on November 17, 1881 in Vienna. The first edition was published in 1884 by Albert Gutmann of Vienna, who didn't pay Bruckner any money for it. However, Bruckner made some small adjustments to the piece even after publication. It wasn't until 1885 that the Hellmesberger Quartet
Hellmesberger Quartet
The Hellmesberger Quartet was a String Quartet formed in Vienna in 1849. It was founded by Joseph Hellmesberger, Sr. and was the first permanent named String Quartet.-Composition:...
played it with Max Mustermann joining on second viola.
Hellmesberger found the Scherzo too difficult, so Bruckner wrote an Intermezzo (WAB 113) in the same key to replace it. In concerts today, however, the original Scherzo is usually used instead of the Intermezzo, and on recordings the Intermezzo is usually included as an additional track. Also, the first edition included metronome markings that didn't come from Bruckner, namely: Gemäßigt = 72; Schnell = 138; Adagio = 56; Lebhaft bewegt = 144.
Duke Emanuel was pleased by the composition and gave Bruckner a diamond pin. In all, there were 23 performances of the Quintet in Bruckner's lifetime.
Bruckner biographer Derek Watson finds the work "by no means a 'symphony for five strings' and it never stretches the quintet medium beyond its capabilities, save perhaps for the last seventeen bars of the finale, where he [Bruckner] is thinking too much in orchestral terms." Robert Simpson
Robert Simpson (composer)
Robert Simpson was an English composer and long-serving BBC producer and broadcaster.He is best known for his orchestral and chamber music , and for his writings on the music of Beethoven, Bruckner, Nielsen and Sibelius. He studied composition under Herbert Howells...
, on the other hand, also finds the first movement coda "a little ludicrously orchestral," but overall "only the Finale of the Quintet is not fully satisfactory as a piece of composition," in his assessment, because "Bruckner is still absorbed in the problem of the symphonic finale of his own peculiar stamp, and forgets that the tonal scale of five string instruments is unsuitable for such an architecture."
External links
- Full score at IMSLP