by Joseph Haydn!
Why was this so difficult?
Everyone knows this quartet (really?).
Everyone loves it.
But who acknowledges that the second part of the first movement (including development, recapitulation and coda) HAS to be repeated? And honestly – it took me so much time to find an interpretation that did agree to the composer’s clear will in this case! Unbelievable!
Why is this so important?
Usually the first part of a sonata form is used to be repeated, but even this is often ignored!
One may argue, today, with so much music at our disposal, who has time to listen to the same 150 bars of the exposition of Beethoven’s Eroica again, right away? Well, come on, that’s just 3 and a half minutes within 17 or 18 or so altogether, and luckily, many recordings do that repetition, though not all.
But why should a larger part be repeated at all?
The old Greek philosoph Heraclitus said it already:
No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.
Bingo!
Let me argue that it is better to repeat something good, cause you find yourself everytime discovering something new, and thus discovering yourself – anew – than to haste again and again to something new, like swiping on a mobile, and stay – well entertained, but also, well – maybe, a bit more empty…
Sure, there are good repetitions and there are boring repetitions. But who tells me what is good and where can I find good quality?
The following video with
The correct “dress for the Emperor”
has some good answers, I think. For my part, I enjoyed it a lot and I’m therfore very happy to share it here.
Just a last afterthought before:
How comes that music or compositions that are not afraid to repeat parts of themselves are also repeately performed and listened to much more often than compositions that are carfully avoiding repetitions?
And where is the evidence that the second part in this quartet movement indeed MUST be repeated? Very simple. You will find out when listening to the wonderful video explanations AND - I'm convinced! - to the quartet itself played there so beautifully. Just a little tip: What happens with the coda at the second (!) time?
Enjoy! And Merry Christmas!!
Freed #musiceducation