Beethoven- String Quartet No. 4 in C Minor, op. 18 Part III
The Minuet and Trio is perhaps the most traditional movement in Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 4.
III. Menuetto e Trio
Ternary form
A lurching ascent in the upper voices sequences upwards before repeating the phrase. A smoother ascent is followed by a slow trill. Beethoven has switched the distribution of the offbeat accents; in the first phrase they are in the ascent, in the second they are in the latter part of the line. At 0:34 the first rising motive returns, followed this time by a more dramatic extension. The second phrase is similarly repeated and extended before a last repeat of the first phrase. A brief transition featuring tutti two-note descents ends the first section.
The trio (1:24) switches key to major and begins with repeated notes followed by a descent. This motive is played in a dialogue between the violin and cello over a repeating tremolo line. The violin ascends to a high A-flat before a cadential descent. The trio theme repeats at 1:45. After another repetition, quiet, hesitant chords lead back to the minuet at 2:37.
The phrases of the minuet are repeated without repetition, and an abbreviated version of the transition ends the movement.
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If you are interested in listening to a recording, the Juilliard String Quartet’s 1964 recordings on Sony come highly recommended, and are what I used to write this summary. You can buy this recording from Amazon by clicking on the image below. While this is not available in the iTunes Music Store, the Emerson String Quartet’s 1997 release on Deutsche Grammophone is also highly recommended.
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