Submitted by jsdubois015 on Tue, 02/09/2010 - 15:18
Beethoven's last four string quartets, known as the Late Quartets, and the Grosse Fuge are a rather unique set of works. They are like an anomaly in the history of classical music. To me, it seems they are completely out of place not simply with the music of the same period, but even with the course of classical music since then. The depth of expression and the substance of that expression in the Late Quartets possess an almost otherworldly quality. It's as if Beethoven breached a depth of human existence that few have imagined, much less actually experienced. In relation to these immortal works, even the Romantic movement looses its luster. In my opinion, only Johannes Brahms comes anywhere near that same profound expression and substance, yet even he still falls a bit short. I can barely find the words to describe the kind of world I hear expressed in the Late Quartets. It's a world of meaning and purpose, of achievement and beauty. A rational world in which only the virtues of man are acknowledged. The kind of world I want to live in.
Reflection on Beethoven's Late Quartets
Submitted by jsdubois015 on Tue, 02/09/2010 - 15:18
Beethoven's last four string quartets, known as the Late Quartets, and the Grosse Fuge are a rather unique set of works. They are like an anomaly in the history of classical music. To me, it seems they are completely out of place not simply with the music of the same period, but even with the course of classical music since then. The depth of expression and the substance of that expression in the Late Quartets possess an almost otherworldly quality. It's as if Beethoven breached a depth of human existence that few have imagined, much less actually experienced. In relation to these immortal works, even the Romantic movement looses its luster. In my opinion, only Johannes Brahms comes anywhere near that same profound expression and substance, yet even he still falls a bit short. I can barely find the words to describe the kind of world I hear expressed in the Late Quartets. It's a world of meaning and purpose, of achievement and beauty. A rational world in which only the virtues of man are acknowledged. The kind of world I want to live in.