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17
TALICH QUARTET
The work opens with an
Allegro non troppo
whose pastoral mood seems to develop
endlessly, multiplying the sound combinations as if this were a symphony.
Of themany secondary ideas, let us just single out the one that spells out the name
of Agathe (von Siebold) – A-G-A-H-E (“H” is B natural in German notation; the T
is missing) – to whom Brahms had been close. Referring to this composition he
wrote,“I have emancipatedmyself frommy last love”. In this vastmovement (lasting
a quarter of an hour) Brahms uses bold modulations and advanced chromaticism.
The following
Scherzo
, showing great finesse, uses Central European colour
reminding us of Dvořák. The first steps of a modest dance are followed by a
presto
giocoso
with a splendid
ländler
rhythm.
By contrast, the
Adagio
in E minor settles into a strict variation form. But this
movement, which theViennese found so tedious, reveals positive charm in the very
nostalgic melody of its theme. Brahms plays skilfully with colours to make each
development “slide” into the following phrase and imperceptibly create a series of
strange and original mutations. Despite a vigorous and very tense episode, the
movement ends in relative calm, with a painful serenity that later reappears in
works by post-Romantic composers such as Schoenberg.
The last movement,
Poco allegro
, returns to the sunny, pastoral climate of the
beginning of the work. The complex writing, notably in the central fugue, unfolds
calmly, soberly, and apparently effortlessly. Brahms attains one of the pinnacles
of his art, combining a folk flavour with absolute mastery of complex and difficult
forms.