Composed 1824-5; 38 minutes

After the acclaim of the monumental Ninth Symphony and Missa solemnis, Beethoven began sketches for a Tenth Symphony and considered plans for a second opera. Yet his creative focus truly crystallized in his preferred medium: the string quartet. This decision had been long in the making—he had twice worked on sketches for a quartet before finalizing the Ninth Symphony. Then, in February 1825, the E-flat major Quartet, Op. 127, became the first of Beethoven’s late great quartets. It was followed by Op. 132 in July 1825 and Op. 130 in November 1826. Op. 127 marks the start of a deeply personal journey. Money was not the issue as quartet writing offered little potential for income. This was, essentially, music written from inner need.

The sonorous opening chords that send the music on its spacious journey sound three times throughout the first movement. Their initial appearance serves as a fanfare and gives a sense of purpose to the music that follows. The chords are played forte and in the home key of E-flat. After a journey to the relative minor (G minor), the chords next appear in the key of G major, still forte, even more sonorously scored, since they now take advantage of the open strings of all four instruments. Then the music travels through more keys as the traditional development gets underway. The maestoso (‘majestic’) chords are forced into yet another key, C major, for their third and final appearance, now marked fortissimo and ever more sonorous. The third appearance of these pillars is even shorter than it was in the opening six measures, as the main theme of the movement now takes over their serene solemnity to end in a mood of ecstasy. 

The second movement continues this serenity through free variations on an unusually long, 18-measure theme. Robert Schumann described the movement’s meditative quality: “One seems to have lingered not 15 short minutes, but an eternity,” he wrote. The four pizzicato chords introducing the third movement mirror the first movement’s Maestoso. These lead into an exuberant Scherzando vivace, driven by a hopping figure introduced by the cello. A whirlwind middle section precedes the reprise, whose assertive final chords are picked up as the finale begins. 

The finale then propels the music forward with an unshakable sense of purpose, showcasing Beethoven at his peak as a composer. His assurance is unwavering, even when early listeners struggled to comprehend the work. To them, Beethoven simply said: “They must hear it more often.” Time—even within his lifetime—proved Beethoven correct. 

— All program notes copyright © 2025 Keith Horner. | Comments welcomed: khnotes@sympatico.ca