Presents
Carl Reinecke
String Quartet No.1 in E flat Major, Op.16
When listening to Reinecke's String Quartet No.1, which dates from 1848, one can't help but notice the influence of Mendelssohn and Schumann. Not surprising in view of the fact that at the time Schumann was so impressed with Reinecke that he entrusted him with all of the arrangements of his works. He was fond of saying that “Reinecke knows what I will compose before I have put pen to paper.” The first movement, Allegro agitato, is promising with its attractive main theme., One hears the influence of Mendelssohn in the running passages over long-lined melodies. The second movement, Andante con moto, is a fetching theme and well executed variations. One of the variations takes a quote from the recitativ of Mendelssohn’s Op.13 quartet and cleverly varies it.. The third movement is an exciting Scherzo full of forward motion. The finale, Molto vivace, has a rustic, jovial subject for its main theme and makes for a satisfactory conclusion.
Nowadays, Reinecke has been all but forgotten, an unjust fate for a man who excelled in virtually every musical field with which he was involved. As a performer, Reinecke was, during the mid-19th century, reckoned for three decades as one of the finest concert pianists before the public. As a composer, he produced widely respected and often performed works in every genre running the gamut from opera, to orchestral to chamber music. As a conductor, he helped turn the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra into a group with few if any peers. As its director, he helped the Leipzig Conservatory become what was widely regarded as the finest in the world. As a teacher of composition and of piano, he was considered to have few if any equals. Among his many students were Grieg, Bruch, Janacek, Albeniz, Sinding, Svendsen, Reznicek, Delius, Arthur Sullivan, George Chadwick, Ethel Smyth, Felix Weingartner, Karl Muck and Hugo Riemann. In his time, Reinecke and his music were unquestionably regarded as first rate.
We feel that this quartet will be enjoyed by professionals and amateurs alike. It has been out of print for over a century and we looked for a set of parts for many years. Eventually we were able to obtain a copy of the 172 year old parts which unsurprisingly had faded in places. We have spent many hours digitally cleaning, darkening, removing fingerings and correcting errors and have been able to create a serviceable performance edition in order to rescue this fine quartet from oblivion. But, it is not pristine like a newly published work nor the equal in quality of a modern edition. The price, less than our generally very low prices, reflects this fact.
Parts: $19.95
