Music - Subject Guides

The Classical String Quartet, 1770-1840

The string quartet, for two violins, viola and violoncello, was one of the most widely-cultivated genres of chamber music during the Classical period, with the Viennese masters Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven all contributing substantially to the literature. The Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library at Duke University has about forty collections of string quartets in parts dating from this time (about 1770-1840), most, though not all complete, and representing composers whose works are rarely found in modern editions. Digitization of these parts makes newly available for performance, study and recording a large and varied repertoire of works for this instrumental ensemble.

Kinderman, William. The String Quartets of Beethoven. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2006.

MT 145.B425 S75 2006  MUSIC STACKS

This resource covers Beethoven's string quartets, featuring biographical references, indexes, a bibliography, and appendix. This book was edited by William Kinderman.  

Parker, Mara E. String Quartets: A Research and Information Guide. New York: Routledge, 2005.

ML 128.S7 P37 2005  MUSIC STACKS

This resource includes bibliographical references and indexes related to string quartets.