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INTÉGRALE DES QUATUORS À CORDES 41
that it was unrelated to any usual form. This is a pure gem, which deserves to be
much better known. The piece endswith a lively, good-humoured Allegro.
The string quartet in E-flat major, K.171 also begins with a short introductory
Adagio, this time not so very unlike the beginning of Beethoven’s String Quartet
No. 14! It leads into a very symphonic Allegro assai, followed by a recapitulation of
the opening Adagio. The second movement, Menuetto, is taken up successively
by each of the four instruments, thus creating a simple divertimento. The
Andantein Cminor (withmutes) is shadowy andmysterious, and the work ends
with a youthfully radiant Allegro assai: such juxtapositions are typical of Mozart,
who explores the differentmoodswith amazing luxuriance.
The string quartet in B-flat major, K.172 begins resolutely with the four very firm
chords of an Allegro spiritoso, in a cloudless sky.As inMozart’s first StringQuartet
K.80, the theme of theAdagio calls tomind the cavatinaPorgi amor from Le Nozze
di Figaro: languor, romanticism, a pathetic expression of ‘heart-rending love’. This
languidnessissweptawaybythefirmrhythmsofa Menuetto,whiletheextremely
inventive Allegro assai expresses a youthful carefreeness and joie de vivre.
The string quartet in D minor, K.173, the last of the six ‘Vienna Quartets’, is in
the key of D minor – the key Mozart used most often to express his anguish.
It begins with a magnificently structured Allegro ma molto moderato, which is
exceptionally long for one of these early quartets. The Andante grazioso is tinged
with a gravity and sadness that are somewhat reminiscent of the next quartet
Mozart composed – the first of theQuartets dedicated toHaydn – but the latter
was composed nine years later. Despite its strong rhythm, the Menuetto remains
nostalgic, while the fugue of the Allegrobrings thework to a close in a climate of
pessimismand anxiety.