The String Quartet in E-flat major, JS 184, is a four-movement chamber piece for two violins, viola, and cello[3] written in June 1885 by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius. It is the first of Sibelius's four string quartets. The quartet appears in the same sketchbook as two other brief pieces for string quartet: first, the Molto moderato – Scherzo (JS 134), which is Sibelius's earliest piece in the genre; and second, a fragmentary [Scherzo] in B minor (without catalogue marking; completed by Kalevi Aho).[4]
| String Quartet in E-flat major | |
|---|---|
| by Jean Sibelius | |
 The composer (c. 1885–1888) | |
| Catalogue | JS 184 |
| Composed | 1885 |
| Publisher | Fazer (1991)[1] |
| Duration | 19 mins.[2] |
| Movements | 4 |
Structure
editThe E-flat major quartet is in four movements, as follows:
- Allegro
- Andante molto
- Scherzo. Allegretto
- Vivace
The piece was published posthumously in 1991 by Fazer Music.[1]
Discography
editThe Sibelius Academy Quartet made the world premiere studio recording of the E-flat major quartet for Finlandia in 1988.[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 | Erkki Kantola | Veikko Kosonen | Arto Noras | 18:48 | 1988 | Järvenpää Hall | Finlandia | |
| 2 | Tempera | Laura Vikman | Silva Koskela | Tiila Kangas | Ulla Lampela | 17:41 | 2004 | Länna Church, Uppland | BIS |
Notes, references, and sources
edit- Notes
- ^ All runtimes are official, as printed on CD or LP liner notes.
- ^ 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.
- ^ Sibelius Academy–Finlandia (4509–95851–2) 1992
- ^ Tempera–BIS (CD–1376) 2005
- References
- ^ a b c Dahlström 2003, p. 617.
- ^ Dahlström 2003, p. 616.
- ^ Dahlström 2003, pp. 616–617.
- ^ Barnett 2007, pp. 11–12.
- 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.
