String Quartet in B-flat major (Sibelius)

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String Quartet in B-flat major
by Jean Sibelius
The composer (c. 1891)
Opus4
Composed1889 (1889)–1890
PublisherFazer [fi] (1991)[1]
Duration31.5 mins.[2]
Movements4
Premiere
Date13 October 1890 (1890-10-13)[1]
LocationHelsinki, Grand Duchy of Finland
Performers

The String Quartet in B-flat major, Op. 4, is a four-movement chamber piece for two violins, viola, and cello[3] written from the summer of 1889 to September 1890 by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius. It is the third of Sibelius's four string quartets. Musicologists have speculated: first, that the Adagio in D minor (JS 12) may have been intended as a slow movement for the Op. 4 quartet; and second, that the Allegretto in B-flat major (without catalogue designation) may be an abandoned sketch.[4]

The B-flat major Quartet received its premiere in Helsinki on 13 October 1890 at the Helsinki Music Institute (now the Sibelius Academy); the Norwegian composer Johan Halvorsen was the first violinist, joined by Wilhelm Santé (violin II), Josef Schwartz (viola), and Otto Hutschenreuter [ru] (cello).[1]

In February 1894, Sibelius arranged Movement III for strings and titled it Presto (also known as Scherzo). This version received its premiere on 17 February 1894 in Turku, with Sibelius conducting the Orchestra of the Turku Musical Society.[1]

Structure[edit]

The Norwegian composer Johan Halvorsen played first violin at the premiere.
An 13 October 1890 ad promoting the premiere of Sibelius's B-flat major Quartet

The B-flat major Quartet is in four movements, as follows:

  1. Allegro
  2. Andante molto
  3. Presto
  4. Allegro

The piece was published posthumously in 1991 by Fazer Music [fi].[1]

Movement I[edit]

The first movement, marked Allegro, is in 2
2 time; it has a duration of about nine minutes.[2]

Movement II[edit]

The second movement, marked Andante molto, is in 2
4 time; it has a duration of about 7.5 minutes.[2]

Movement III[edit]

The third movement, marked Presto, is in 3
4 time; it has a duration of about six minutes.[2]

Movement IV[edit]

The fourth movement, marked Allegro, is in 4
4 time; it has a duration of about nine minutes.[2]

Discography[edit]

The Sibelius Academy Quartet made the world premiere studio recording of the B-flat major Quartet for Finlandia in 1985.[1] The table below lists this and other commercially available recordings:

No. Quartet Violin I Violin II Viola Cello Runtime[a] Rec.[b] Recording venue Label Ref.
1 Sibelius Academy Seppo Tukiainen [fi] Erkki Kantola [fi] Veikko Kosonen Arto Noras 31:28 1984 Convent Church, Naantali Finlandia
[c]
2 Tempera [fi] Laura Vikman Silva Koskela Tiila Kangas Ulla Lampela 29:42 2004 Länna Church, Uppland [sv] BIS
[d]

The Finnish conductor Pekka Helasvuo [fi] and the Finlandia Sinfonietta [fi] made the world premiere studio recording of Presto in 1985 for Finlandia.[e] The table below lists this and other commercially available recordings:

No. Conductor Ensemble Rec.[f] Time Recording venue Label Ref.
1 Pekka Helasvuo [fi] Finlandia Sinfonietta [fi] 1985 6:41 Laurentius Hall [fi] Finlandia
[g]
2 Neeme Järvi Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra 1987 6:41 Gothenburg Concert Hall BIS
[h]
3 Juha Kangas [fi] (1) Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra (1) 1994 6:00 Kaustinen Church [fi] Finlandia
[i]
4 Osmo Vänskä Lahti Symphony Orchestra 2004 6:45 Sibelius Hall BIS
[j]
5 Juha Kangas [fi] (2) Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra (2) 2011 5:57 Snellman Hall, Kokkola Alba [fi]
[k]

Notes, references, and sources[edit]

Notes
  1. ^ All runtimes are official, as printed on CD or LP liner notes.
  2. ^ Refers to the year in which the performers recorded the work; this may not be the same as the year in which the recording was first released to the general public.
  3. ^ Name Quartet–Label (4509–95851–2) 1992
  4. ^ Tempera–BIS (CD–1466) 2007
  5. ^ The musicologist Fabian Dahlström [fi], in his 2003 catalogue of Sibelius's works, credits the Estonian-American conductor Neeme Järvi and the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra with the world premiere studio recording of Presto.[1] However, according to liner notes, this recording was made in 1987 for BIS, about two years after the 1985 recording by Helasvuo and the Finlandia Sinfonietta.
  6. ^ Refers to the year in which the performers recorded the work; this may not be the same as the year in which the recording was first released to the general public.
  7. ^ P. Helasvuo–Finlandia (FACD 354) 1986
  8. ^ N. Järvi–BIS (CD–384) 1987
  9. ^ J. Kangas–Finlandia (4509–98995–2) 1996
  10. ^ O. Vänskä–BIS (CD–1485) 2006
  11. ^ J. Kangas–Alba (ABCD 344) 2012
References
  1. ^ a b c d e f g Dahlström 2003, p. 14.
  2. ^ a b c d e Dahlström 2003, p. 13.
  3. ^ Dahlström 2003, pp. 13–14.
  4. ^ Barnett 2007, pp. 51, 53, 60–61, 89.
Sources
  • Barnett, Andrew (2007). Sibelius. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-11159-0.
  • Dahlström, Fabian [in Swedish] (2003). Jean Sibelius: Thematisch-bibliographisches Verzeichnis seiner Werke [Jean Sibelius: A Thematic Bibliographic Index of His Works] (in German). Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel. ISBN 3-7651-0333-0.
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