What is a string quartet?
Q: What is a string quartet?
A: A string quartet is a piece of music for four string instruments. It can also refer to the four people who play the piece.
Q: What are the four instruments in a string quartet?
A: The four instruments in a string quartet are usually two violins, one viola and one cello.
Q: Why isn't a double bass used in a string quartet?
A: The double bass is not used because it would sound too loud and heavy compared to the other instruments, disrupting the balance between them.
Q: Who wrote many famous string quartets?
A: Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) wrote many famous string quartets which made this form of chamber music very popular. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) and Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) also wrote many notable pieces for this genre.
Q: How did composers write for the cello during the Classical period?
A: During the Classical period, composers started writing cello parts that had an identity of their own, rather than just playing what was written for the viola but one octave lower.
Q: Who were some Romantic era composers who wrote for strings?
A: Some Romantic era composers who wrote pieces for strings include Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847), Robert Schumann (1810-1856), Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), Pyotr Tchaikovsky (1840-1893), Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904).
Q: What did some 20th century composers do with their works for strings?
A: In the 20th century, some composers like Claude Debussy (1862-1918) and Maurice Ravel (1875-1934) each wrote one work for strings while Arnold Schoenberg added a voice to his first String Quartet. Béla Bartók's six works were very hard to play due to exciting rhythms from Hungarian folk music as well as complex harmonies while Dmitri Shostakovich composed fifteen and Benjamin Britten three such works.
