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65-425: Kremerata Baltica is a chamber orchestra consisting of musicians from Baltic countries ( Estonia , Latvia , Lithuania ). It was founded by Latvian violinist Gidon Kremer in 1997. Gidon Kremer is an artistic director of Kremerata Baltica. Kremerata Baltica first appeared on stage of Austria's Lockenhaus Chamber Music Festival and since then has become well known for its energy and joy in playing. The orchestra

130-520: A Syrian artist Nizar Ali Badr , which focuses on the situation in the Middle East and the current refugee problem. Essential to Kremerata Baltica's artistic personality is its creative approach to programming, which often looks beyond the mainstream and has given rise to numerous world premieres of works by composers such as Arvo Pärt , Giya Kancheli Pēteris Vasks , Leonid Desyatnikov , Alexander Raskatov , Artūrs Maskats . The chamber orchestra

195-401: A conversation, often truly beautiful, often oddly and turbidly woven, among four people." Their awareness is exemplified by composer and virtuoso violinist Louis Spohr . Spohr divided his 36 string quartets into two types: the quatuor brillant , essentially a violin concerto with string trio accompaniment; and quatuor dialogue , in the conversational tradition. During the 19th century, with

260-410: A full orchestral section. J. S. Bach: Trio sonata on YouTube from The Musical Offering , played by Ensemble Brillante Baroque chamber music was often contrapuntal ; that is, each instrument played the same melodic materials at different times, creating a complex, interwoven fabric of sound. Because each instrument was playing essentially the same melodies, all the instruments were equal. In

325-567: A giant of Western music. Beethoven transformed chamber music, raising it to a new plane, both in terms of content and in terms of the technical demands on performers and audiences. His works, in the words of Maynard Solomon , were "...the models against which nineteenth-century romanticism measured its achievements and failures." His late quartets , in particular, were considered so daunting an accomplishment that many composers after him were afraid to try composing quartets; Johannes Brahms composed and tore up 20 string quartets before he dared publish

390-423: A hall and collecting the receipts from the performance. Increasingly, they wrote chamber music not only for rich patrons, but for professional musicians playing for a paying audience. At the beginning of the 19th century, luthiers developed new methods of constructing the violin , viola and cello that gave these instruments a richer tone, more volume, and more carrying power. Also at this time, bowmakers made

455-454: A hundred string quartets, and more than one hundred quintets for two violins, viola and two cellos. In this innovative ensemble, later used by Schubert , Boccherini gives flashy, virtuosic solos to the principal cello, as a showcase for his own playing. Violinist Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf and cellist Johann Baptist Wanhal , who both played pickup quartets with Haydn on second violin and Mozart on viola, were popular chamber music composers of

520-609: A keyboard instrument (harpsichord or organ) or by a string quartet or a string orchestra . The instrumentation of trio sonatas was also often flexibly specified; some of Handel's sonatas are scored for " German flute , Hoboy [oboe] or Violin" Bass lines could be played by violone , cello , theorbo , or bassoon , and sometimes three or four instruments would join in the bass line in unison. Sometimes composers mixed movements for chamber ensembles with orchestral movements. Telemann's 'Tafelmusik' (1733), for example, has five sets of movements for various combinations of instruments, ending with

585-467: A movement that contended that "pure music" had run its course with Beethoven, and that new, programmatic forms of music –in which music created "images" with its melodies–were the future of the art. The composers of this school had no use for chamber music. Opposing this view was Johannes Brahms and his associates, especially the powerful music critic Eduard Hanslick . This War of the Romantics shook

650-634: A music lover and amateur baryton player, for whom Haydn wrote many of his string trios. Mozart wrote three string quartets for the King of Prussia, Frederick William II , a cellist. Many of Beethoven's quartets were first performed with patron Count Andrey Razumovsky on second violin. Boccherini composed for the king of Spain. With the decline of the aristocracy and the rise of new social orders throughout Europe, composers increasingly had to make money by selling their compositions and performing concerts. They often gave subscription concerts, which involved renting

715-424: A strong connection with the community. Composers were in high favor with orchestral works and solo virtuosi works, which made up the largest part of the public concert repertoire. Early French composers including Camille Saint-Saëns and César Franck . Apart from the "central" Austro-Germanic countries, there was an occurrence of the subculture of chamber music in other regions such as Britain. There chamber music

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780-480: A type of music to be played as much as performed. Amateur quartet societies sprang up throughout Europe, and no middling-sized city in Germany or France was without one. These societies sponsored house concerts , compiled music libraries, and encouraged the playing of quartets and other ensembles. In European countries, in particular Germany and France, like minded musicians were brought together and started to develop

845-659: A wealthy Jewish family in Hamburg, Mendelssohn proved himself a child prodigy. By the age of 16, he had written his first major chamber work, the String Octet, Op. 20 . Already in this work, Mendelssohn showed some of the unique style that was to characterize his later works; notably, the gossamer light texture of his scherzo movements, exemplified also by the Canzonetta movement of the String Quartet, Op. 12 , and

910-434: A work that he felt was worthy of the "giant marching behind". Beethoven made his formal debut as a composer with three Piano Trios, Op. 1 . Even these early works, written when Beethoven was only 22, while adhering to a strictly classical mold, showed signs of the new paths that Beethoven was to forge in the coming years. When he showed the manuscript of the trios to Haydn, his teacher, prior to publication, Haydn approved of

975-432: Is a long, lyrical solo for cello in the second movement, giving the cello a new type of voice in the quartet conversation. And the last movement of Op. 18, No. 6, "La Malincolia", creates a new type of formal structure, interleaving a slow, melancholic section with a manic dance. Beethoven was to use this form in later quartets, and Brahms and others adopted it as well. Beethoven: Quartet, Op. 59, No. 3 , played by

1040-5809: Is supported by the governments of three Baltic States – Estonia , Latvia , Lithuania. Mieczyslaw Weinberg: Chamber Symphonies & Piano Quintet Works by Mieczysław Weinberg Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica, Yulianna Avdeeva, Mate Bekavac, Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla 2017, ECM New Series ECM 2538/39 Shostakovich: Piano Concertos Works by Dmitri Shostakovich Performed by: Anna Vinnitskaya, Kremerata Baltica, Tobias Willner, Ivan Rudin 2015, Alpha Classics Alpha 203 Chiaroscuro Works by Giya Kancheli Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica, Patricia Kopatchinskaja 2015, ECM NeSe 2442 New Seasons Works by P. Glass, A. Pärt, G. Kancheli, S. Umebayashi, Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica, Giedre Dirvanauskaite, Andrei Pushkarev, Girls' Choir of Vilnius Choir-Singin School "Liepaites" 2015, Deutsche Grammophon 0289 479 4817 Mieczysław Weinberg Works by Mieczysław Weinberg Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica, Daniil Trifonov, Daniil Grishin, Giedre Dirvanauskaite, Danielis Rubinas 2014, ECM New Series 2368-69 The Art of Instrumentation: Homage to Glenn Gould Works by Valentin Silvestrov, Georgs Pelecis, Alexander Raskatov, Alexander Wustin, Carl Vine, Raminta Serksnyte, Giya Kancheli, Leonid Desyatnikov, Victoria Vita Poleva, Stevan Kovacs Tickmayer, Victor Kissine. Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Andrei Pushkarev, Dita Krenberga, Justina Gelgotaite, Reinut Tepp, Dzeraldas Bidva, Agne Doveikaite-Rubiniene, Daniil Grishin, Vidas Vekerotas, Giedre Dirvanauskaite, Peteris Cirksis, Kremerata Baltica 2012, Nonesuch Records 528982 Transfigurations Works by: F. Schubert Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica 2012, Burleske De Profundis Works by Jean Sibelius, Arvo Pärt, Raminta Šerkšnyte, Robert Schumann, Michael Nyman, Franz Schubert, Stevan Kovacs Tickmayer, Dmitri Shostakovich, Lera Auerbach, Astor Piazzolla, Georgs Pelecis, and Alfred Schnittke Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica 2010, Nonesuch Records 287228 Hymns and Prayers Works by Stevan Kovacs Tickmayer, César Franck and Giya Kancheli Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Roman Kofman, Khatia Buniatishvili, Andrei Pushkarev, Marija Nemanyte, Maxim Rysanov, Giedre Dirvanauskaite, Sofia Altunashvili, Kremerata Baltica 2010, ECM 2161 Mozart: Piano Concertos 20 & 27 Works by: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Performed by: Evgeny Kissin, Kremerata Baltica 2010, EMI 26645 Mozart: The Complete Violin Concertos Works by: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica 2009, Nonesuch Records 512789 Gustav Mahler/Dmitri Shostakovich Works by: G. Mahler/D. Shostakovich Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Yulia Korpacheva, Fedor Kuznetsov, Kremerata Baltica 2007, ECM 8372024 Shostakovich Works by: D. Shostakovich Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Yuri Bashmet, Kremerata Baltica 2006, Deutsche Grammophon 477 619-6 Lollipops/Georgs Pelecis Works by: F. Schubert, J. S. Bach, S. Gubaidulina, F. Mendelssohn, F. A. Mozart, R. Schumann, B. Bartok, D. Schostakowitsch, A. Piazzolla, J. Mandel, V. Reinfeldt, G. Miller, G. Pelecis Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica 2006, Burleske String Quartet in G Major Works by: F. Schubert (arr. V. Kissine) Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica 2005, ECM 8371883 In l'istesso tempo Works by: Giya Kancheli Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Oleg Maisenberg, Kremerata Baltica, Bridge Ensemble 2005, ECM 8371767 G. Pelecis: Revelation Works by: G. Pelecis Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica 2005, Burleske Kremerland Works by: F. Liszt, G. Kancheli, S. Dreznin, L. Czishyk, A. Vustin, A. Bakshi, G. Pelecis, Ī. Dunayevsky, W. A. Mozart Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Marta Sudraba, Leonids Czishyk, Andrei Pushkarev, Danelius Rubins, Kremerata Baltica 2004, Deutsche Grammophon 474 8012 Russian Seasons Works by: L. Desyatnikov, A. Raskatov Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Julija Korpaceva, Kremerata Baltica 2003, Nonesuch Records 79803 Happy Birthday Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica 2003, Nonesuch Records 79657 George Enescu Works by: G. Enescu Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Dzeraldas Bidva, Ula Ulijona, Marta Sudraba, Andrius Zlabys, Kremerata Baltica 2002, Nonesuch Records 79682 Tracing Astor Works by: A. Piazzolla, G. Sollima, L. Desyatnikov, G. Pelecis Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Ula Ulijona, Marta Sudraba, Sol Gabetta, Leonid Desyatnikov, Horacio Ferrer, Kremerata Baltica 2001, Nonesuch Records 79601 After Mozart Works by: W. A. Mozart, A. Raskatov, A. Schnittke, V. Silvestrov Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica 2001, Nonesuch Records 79633 Silencio Works by: A. Pärt, P. Glass, V. Martynov Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica, Tatjana Grindenko, Reinuts Teps, Eri Klas 2000, Nonesuch Records 79582 Eight Seasons Works by: A. Vivaldi, A. Piazzolla Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica 2000, Nonesuch Records 79568 Tango Ballet Works by: A. Piazzolla Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica, Ula Zebriunaite, Marta Sudraba, Pers Arne Glorvigens, Aloizs Poss, Vadims Saharovs 1999, Teldec 22661 Vasks: Distant Light / Voices Works by: P. Vasks Performed by: Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica 1999, Teldec 22660 Chamber music Because of its intimate nature, chamber music has been described as "the music of friends". For more than 100 years, chamber music

1105-646: The Baroque – two treble instruments and a bass instrument , often with a keyboard or other chording instrument ( harpsichord , organ , harp or lute , for example) filling in the harmony. Both the bass instrument and the chordal instrument would play the basso continuo part. During the Baroque period, chamber music as a genre was not clearly defined. Often, works could be played on any variety of instruments, in orchestral or chamber ensembles. The Art of Fugue by Johann Sebastian Bach , for example, can be played on

1170-406: The Baroque era , the harpsichord was one of the main instruments used in chamber music. The harpsichord used quills to pluck strings, and it had a delicate sound. Due to the design of the harpsichord, the attack or weight with which the performer played the keyboard did not change the volume or tone. Between about 1750 and the late 1700s, the harpsichord gradually fell out of use. By the late 1700s,

1235-469: The Große Fuge , of the late quartets, as, "...this absolutely contemporary piece of music that will be contemporary forever." The string quartets 1–6, Op. 18 , were written in the classical style, in the same year that Haydn wrote his Op. 76 string quartets . Even here, Beethoven stretched the formal structures pioneered by Haydn and Mozart. In the quartet Op. 18, No. 1, in F major, for example, there

1300-628: The Joachim Quartet , led by Joseph Joachim , debuted many of the new string quartets by Brahms and other composers. Another famous quartet player was Vilemina Norman Neruda , also known as Lady Hallé. Indeed, during the last third of the century, women performers began taking their place on the concert stage: an all-women string quartet led by Emily Shinner , and the Lucas quartet, also all women, were two notable examples. Leonid Desyatnikov Too Many Requests If you report this error to

1365-672: The Modigliani Quartet Piano Trio, Op. 70, No. 1, "Ghost" , played by the Claremont Trio In the years 1805 to 1806, Beethoven composed the three Op. 59 quartets on a commission from Count Razumovsky, who played second violin in their first performance. These quartets, from Beethoven's middle period, were pioneers in the romantic style. Besides introducing many structural and stylistic innovations, these quartets were much more difficult technically to perform – so much so that they were, and remain, beyond

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1430-844: The Prague Spring , The Proms , Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, etc. Kremerata Baltica also holds its own Festival in Sigulda, Latvia since 2003. While the majority of the concerts are led by and performed with Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica has appeared with artists like soprano Jessye Norman ; pianists Martha Argerich , Mikhail Pletnev , Evgeny Kissin , Oleg Maisenberg , Daniil Trifonov ; violinists Thomas Zehetmair , Vadim Repin , Tatiana Grindenko ; cellists Boris Pergamenschikov , Yo-Yo Ma , Mischa Maisky , David Geringas ; conductors include Sir Simon Rattle , Esa-Pekka Salonen , Christoph Eschenbach , Kent Nagano , Heinz Holliger , Vladimir Ashkenazy , Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla . In recent seasons

1495-495: The contrabass . Beethoven: Septet, Op. 20 , first movement, played by the Ensemble Mediterrain In his 17 string quartets, composed over the course of 37 of his 56 years, Beethoven goes from classical composer par excellence to creator of musical Romanticism, and finally, with his late string quartets, he transcends classicism and romanticism to create a genre that defies categorization. Stravinsky referred to

1560-446: The pianoforte became more popular as an instrument for performance. Even though the pianoforte was invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori at the beginning of the 1700s, it did not become widely used until the end of that century, when technical improvements in its construction made it a more effective instrument. Unlike the harpsichord, the pianoforte could play soft or loud dynamics and sharp sforzando attacks depending on how hard or soft

1625-669: The 18th century, tastes began to change: many composers preferred a new, lighter Galant style, with "thinner texture, ... and clearly defined melody and bass" to the complexities of counterpoint. Now a new custom arose that gave birth to a new form of chamber music: the serenade . Patrons invited street musicians to play evening concerts below the balconies of their homes, their friends and their lovers. Patrons and musicians commissioned composers to write suitable suites of dances and tunes, for groups of two to five or six players. These works were called serenades, nocturnes, divertimenti, or cassations (from gasse=street). The young Joseph Haydn

1690-544: The Fredonia Quartet Program, July 2008 Schubert's music, as his life, exemplified the contrasts and contradictions of his time. On the one hand, he was the darling of Viennese society: he starred in soirées that became known as Schubertiaden , where he played his light, mannered compositions that expressed the gemütlichkeit of Vienna of the 1820s. On the other hand, his own short life was shrouded in tragedy, wracked by poverty and ill health. Chamber music

1755-578: The Op. 59 quartets, Beethoven wrote two more quartets during his middle period – Op. 74 , the "Harp" quartet, named for the unusual harp-like effect Beethoven creates with pizzicato passages in the first movement, and Op. 95 , the "Serioso". The Serioso is a transitional work that ushers in Beethoven's late period – a period of compositions of great introspection. "The particular kind of inwardness of Beethoven's last style period", writes Joseph Kerman, gives one

1820-673: The United States of America, and other countries concert halls like Carnegie Hall (USA), Schloss Neuhardenberg , Schloss Elmau , Philharmonie im Gasteig in Munich (Germany), Schloss Esterhazy , Lockenhaus , Musikverein (Austria), Rudolfinum (Czech Republic), the Royal Albert Hall (United Kingdom). During its career the orchestra visited many festivals – Salzburg Festival , Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival ,

1885-405: The artistic world of the period, with vituperative exchanges between the two camps, concert boycotts, and petitions. Although amateur playing thrived throughout the 19th century, this was also a period of increasing professionalization of chamber music performance. Professional quartets began to dominate the chamber music concert stage. The Hellmesberger Quartet , led by Joseph Hellmesberger , and

1950-438: The chamber music instruments. Many of Schumann's chamber works, including all three of his string quartets and his piano quartet have contrapuntal sections interwoven seamlessly into the overall compositional texture. The composers of the first half of the 19th century were acutely aware of the conversational paradigm established by Haydn and Mozart. Schumann wrote that in a true quartet "everyone has something to say ...

2015-524: The development of cyclic structure. In his Piano Quintet in E ;flat, Op. 44 , Schumann wrote a double fugue in the finale, using the theme of the first movement and the theme of the last movement. Both Schumann and Mendelssohn, following the example set by Beethoven, revived the fugue, which had fallen out of favor since the Baroque period. However, rather than writing strict, full-length fugues , they used counterpoint as another mode of conversation between

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2080-440: The elder composer to say to Mozart's father, "I tell you before God as an honest man that your son is the greatest composer known to me either in person or by reputation. He has taste, and, what is more, the most profound knowledge of composition." Many other composers wrote chamber compositions during this period that were popular at the time and are still played today. Luigi Boccherini , Italian composer and cellist, wrote nearly

2145-649: The emerging romantic style. In his 31 years, Schubert devoted much of his life to chamber music , composing 15 string quartets, two piano trios, string trios, a piano quintet commonly known as the Trout Quintet , an octet for strings and winds , and his famous quintet for two violins, viola, and two cellos. Franz Schubert , Trout Quintet , D. 667, performed by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Schubert on YouTube : String Quintet in C, D. 956, first movement, recorded at

2210-482: The ensemble has pushed back the boundaries of its work to include events such as "To Russia with Love", a concert staged at Berlin's Philharmonie in 2013 to promote the cause of human rights in Russia, and "All About Gidon", a part-scenic autobiographical show in which Gidon Kremer performs works close to his heart and speaks about the life and career of an artist. Since 2013 Kremerata Baltica and Gidon Kremer have partnered

2275-575: The ethereal, dreamlike effect of open intervals between the high E string and the open A string in the second movement of quartet Op. 132; the use of sul ponticello (playing on the bridge of the violin) for a brittle, scratchy sound in the Presto movement of Op. 131; the use of the Lydian mode , rarely heard in Western music for 200 years, in Op. 132; a cello melody played high above all the other strings in

2340-515: The famous Russian clown and mime artist Slava Polunin and his Academy of Fools in "Snow Symphony", a joint project based on Polunin's "Snowshow". In 2015 the ensemble launched its creative project "Masks and Faces", collaboration between Gidon Kremer and the Russian painter, polemicist and philosopher Maxim Kantor . The latest Kremerata Baltica project "Pictures from the East" is a joint venture with

2405-416: The feeling that "the music is sounding only for the composer and for one other auditor, an awestruck eavesdropper: you." In the late quartets, the quartet conversation is often disjointed, proceeding like a stream of consciousness. Melodies are broken off, or passed in the middle of the melodic line from instrument to instrument. Beethoven uses new effects, never before essayed in the string quartet literature:

2470-481: The final, vigorous Presto movement, he returns to the opening adagio to conclude the piece. This string quartet is also Mendelssohn's homage to Beethoven; the work is studded with quotes from Beethoven's middle and late quartets. During his adult life, Mendelssohn wrote two piano trios, seven works for string quartet, two string quintets, the octet, a sextet for piano and strings, and numerous sonatas for piano with violin, cello, and clarinet. Robert Schumann continued

2535-463: The finale of Op. 132. Yet for all this disjointedness, each quartet is tightly designed, with an overarching structure that ties the work together. Beethoven wrote eight piano trios, five string trios, two string quintets, and numerous pieces for wind ensemble. He also wrote ten sonatas for violin and piano and five sonatas for cello and piano. As Beethoven, in his last quartets, went off in his own direction, Franz Schubert carried on and established

2600-502: The first two, but warned against publishing the third trio, in C minor, as too radical, warning it would not "...be understood and favorably received by the public." Haydn was wrong—the third trio was the most popular of the set, and Haydn's criticisms caused a falling-out between him and the sensitive Beethoven. The trio is, indeed, a departure from the mold that Haydn and Mozart had formed. Beethoven makes dramatic deviations of tempo within phrases and within movements. He greatly increases

2665-515: The independence of the strings, especially the cello, allowing it to range above the piano and occasionally even the violin. If his Op. 1 trios introduced Beethoven's works to the public, his Septet, Op. 20 , established him as one of Europe's most popular composers. The septet, scored for violin, viola, cello, contrabass, clarinet, horn, and bassoon, was a huge hit. It was played in concerts again and again. It appeared in transcriptions for many combinations – one of which, for clarinet, cello and piano,

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2730-658: The middle of the 19th century, with the rise of the feminist movement, women also started to receive acceptability to be participated in chamber music. Thousands of quartets were published by hundreds of composers; between 1770 and 1800, more than 2000 quartets were published, and the pace did not decline in the next century. Throughout the 19th century, composers published string quartets now long neglected: George Onslow wrote 36 quartets and 35 quintets; Gaetano Donizetti wrote dozens of quartets, Antonio Bazzini , Anton Reicha , Carl Reissiger , Joseph Suk and others wrote to fill an insatiable demand for quartets. In addition, there

2795-412: The origin of classical instrumental ensembles to be the sonata da camera (chamber sonata) and the sonata da chiesa (church sonata). These were compositions for one to five or more instruments. The sonata da camera was a suite of slow and fast movements, interspersed with dance tunes; the sonata da chiesa was the same, but the dances were omitted. These forms gradually developed into the trio sonata of

2860-459: The performer played the keys. The improved pianoforte was adopted by Mozart and other composers, who began composing chamber ensembles with the piano playing a leading role. The piano was to become more and more dominant through the 19th century, so much so that many composers, such as Franz Liszt and Frédéric Chopin , wrote almost exclusively for solo piano (or solo piano with orchestra ). Ludwig van Beethoven straddled this period of change as

2925-404: The period would consist of Haydn was by no means the only composer developing new modes of chamber music. Even before Haydn, many composers were already experimenting with new forms. Giovanni Battista Sammartini , Ignaz Holzbauer , and Franz Xaver Richter wrote precursors of the string quartet. Franz Ignaz von Beecke (1733-1803), with his Piano Quintet in A minor (1770) and 17 string quartets

2990-439: The period. The turn of the 19th century saw dramatic changes in society and in music technology which had far-reaching effects on the way chamber music was composed and played. Throughout the 18th century, the composer was normally an employee of an aristocrat, and the chamber music he or she composed was for the pleasure of aristocratic players and listeners. Haydn, for example, was an employee of Nikolaus I, Prince Esterházy ,

3055-637: The piano, and of symphonic composition, was not merely a matter of preference; it was also a matter of ideology . In the 1860s, a schism grew among romantic musicians over the direction of music. Many composers tend to express their romantic persona through their works. By the time, these chamber works are not necessarily dedicated for any specific dedicatee. Famous chamber works such as Fanny Mendelssohn D minor Piano Trio, Ludwig van Beethoven's Trio in E-flat major, and Franz Schubert's Piano Quintet in A major are all highly personal. Liszt and Richard Wagner led

3120-510: The present, chamber music has been a reflection of the changes in the technology and the society that produced it. During the Middle Ages and the early Renaissance , instruments were used primarily as accompaniment for singers. String players would play along with the melody line sung by the singer. There were also purely instrumental ensembles, often of stringed precursors of the violin family , called consorts . Some analysts consider

3185-474: The quintet for violin, two violas, cello, and horn, K. 407, quartets for flute and strings, and various wind instrument combinations. He wrote six string quintets for two violins, two violas and cello, which explore the rich tenor tones of the violas, adding a new dimension to the string quartet conversation. Mozart's string quartets are considered the pinnacle of the classical art. The six string quartets that he dedicated to Haydn , his friend and mentor, inspired

3250-436: The reach of many amateur string players. When first violinist Ignaz Schuppanzigh complained of their difficulty, Beethoven retorted, "Do you think I care about your wretched violin when the spirit moves me?" Among the difficulties are complex syncopations and cross-rhythms; synchronized runs of sixteenth, thirty-second, and sixty-fourth notes; and sudden modulations requiring special attention to intonation . In addition to

3315-527: The rise of new technology driven by the Industrial Revolution , printed music became cheaper and thus more accessible while domestic music making gained widespread popularity. Composers began to incorporate new elements and techniques into their works to appeal to this open market, since there was an increased consumer desire for chamber music. While improvements in instruments led to more public performances of chamber music, it remained very much

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3380-480: The scherzo of the Piano Trio No. 1 in D minor, Op. 49 . Another characteristic that Mendelssohn pioneered is the cyclic form in overall structure. This means the reuse of thematic material from one movement to the next, to give the total piece coherence. In his second string quartet , he opens the piece with a peaceful adagio section in A major, that contrasts with the stormy first movement in A minor. After

3445-526: The second theme, a lilting duet in the lower voices. The alternating Sturm und Drang and relaxation continue throughout the movement. These contending forces are expressed in some of Schubert's other works: in the quartet Death and the Maiden , the Rosamunde quartet and in the stormy, one-movement Quartettsatz, D. 703 . Unlike Schubert, Felix Mendelssohn had a life of peace and prosperity. Born into

3510-579: The treble and bass lines of the piano score. But Mozart gives the strings an independent role, using them as a counter to the piano, and adding their individual voices to the chamber music conversation. Mozart introduced the newly invented clarinet into the chamber music arsenal, with the Kegelstatt Trio for viola, clarinet and piano, K. 498, and the Quintet for Clarinet and String Quartet , K. 581. He also tried other innovative ensembles, including

3575-399: The trio sonata, there is often no ascendent or solo instrument, but all three instruments share equal importance. The harmonic role played by the keyboard or other chording instrument was subsidiary, and usually the keyboard part was not even written out; rather, the chordal structure of the piece was specified by numeric codes over the bass line, called figured bass . In the second half of

3640-468: The violin bow longer, with a thicker ribbon of hair under higher tension. This improved projection, and also made possible new bowing techniques. In 1820, Louis Spohr invented the chinrest, which gave violinists more freedom of movement in their left hands, for a more nimble technique. These changes contributed to the effectiveness of public performances in large halls, and expanded the repertoire of techniques available to chamber music composers. Throughout

3705-455: The way one instrument introduces a melody or motif and then other instruments subsequently "respond" with a similar motif – has been a thread woven through the history of chamber music composition from the end of the 18th century to the present. The analogy to conversation recurs in descriptions and analyses of chamber music compositions. From its earliest beginnings in the Medieval period to

3770-486: Was a lively market for string quartet arrangements of popular and folk tunes , piano works, symphonies, and opera arias . But opposing forces were at work. The middle of the 19th century saw the rise of superstar virtuosi, who drew attention away from chamber music toward solo performance. The piano, which could be mass-produced, became an instrument of preference, and many composers, like Chopin and Liszt, composed primarily if not exclusively for piano. The ascendance of

3835-467: Was also one of the pioneers of chamber music of the Classical period. Another renowned composer of chamber music of the period was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart . Mozart's seven piano trios and two piano quartets were the first to apply the conversational principle to chamber music with piano. Haydn's piano trios are essentially piano sonatas with the violin and cello playing mostly supporting roles, doubling

3900-401: Was commissioned to write several of these. Joseph Haydn is generally credited with creating the modern form of chamber music as we know it, although scholars today such as Roger Hickman argue "the idea that Haydn invented the string quartet and single-handedly advanced the genre is based on only a vague notion of the true history of the eighteenth-century genre." A typical string quartet of

3965-516: Was formed as an educational project promoting the cultural life of the Baltics. By Los Angeles Times they were described as "extraordinary young players ... [who] animate everything their bows touch." Kremerata Baltica performs around 70 concerts annually during tours throughout Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Regular performances are held in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Japan,

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4030-431: Was often performed by upper- and middle-class men with less advanced musical skills in an unexpected setting such as informal ensembles in private residence with few audience members. In Britain, the most common form of chamber music compositions are the string quartets , sentimental songs and piano chamber works like the piano trio , in a way depicts the standard conception of the conventional "Victorian music making". In

4095-568: Was played primarily by amateur musicians in their homes, and even today, when chamber music performance has migrated from the home to the concert hall, many musicians, amateur and professional, still play chamber music for their own pleasure. Playing chamber music requires special skills, both musical and social, that differ from the skills required for playing solo or symphonic works. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe described chamber music (specifically, string quartet music) as "four rational people conversing". This conversational paradigm – which refers to

4160-453: Was the ideal medium to express this conflict, "to reconcile his essentially lyric themes with his feeling for dramatic utterance within a form that provided the possibility of extreme color contrasts." The String Quintet in C, D.956 , is an example of how this conflict is expressed in music. After a slow introduction, the first theme of the first movement, fiery and dramatic, leads to a bridge of rising tension, peaking suddenly and breaking into

4225-451: Was written by Beethoven himself – and was so popular that Beethoven feared it would eclipse his other works. So much so that by 1815, Carl Czerny wrote that Beethoven "could not endure his septet and grew angry because of the universal applause which it has received." The septet is written as a classical divertimento in six movements, including two minuets, and a set of variations. It is full of catchy tunes, with solos for everyone, including

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