Franz Krommer's String Quartet in A Major, Op.26 No.3, is the last of a set of three completed in 1800 and published the following year by the Viennese firm of Artaria. It was dedicated to Adam Rzyszczewski, a minor Polish count who presumably commissioned the work. The work is in four movements. The opening Allegro begins with a unisono downward 16th note drum roll, which heralds in a lyrical main theme but reappears throughout the movement, each time introducing a new theme. The second movement is an extremely intricate, Adagio, in which the first violin has a lovely melody which is decorated by rapid filigree embellishments. In third place is a typical Viennese, Haydn-esque Menuetto allegretto. The nicely contrasting trio section begins in an unusual fashion with the first violin leading alone with an upward scale before the others join in. Three double-stopped chords introduce the lively finale, a Presto.
Franz Krommer (1759-1831) was born in the town of Kamnitz, then part of the Habsburg Austrian Empire (today Kamenice in the Czech Republic). It had a mixed population of Germans and Czechs and though baptized František Vincenc Kramář by the time he was 15, Krommer began using the Germanized version of his name for the rest of his life, the name by which he became known to the world. Krommer was one of the most successful composers in Vienna at the turn of the 18th Century. His reputation was attested to by the fact that his works were frequently republished throughout Germany, England, France, Italy, Scandinavia, and even the United States. According to several contemporary sources, he was regarded with Haydn as the leading composer of string quartets and as a serious rival of Beethoven. Krommer was a violinist of considerable ability who came to Vienna around 1785. For the following 10 years, he held appointments at various aristocratic courts in Hungary. He returned to Vienna in 1795, where he remained until his death, holding various positions, including that of Court Composer (Hofmusiker) to the Emperor, Franz I, an enthusiastic quartet player. He was the last composer to hold this august title, and one of his duties was accompanying the Emperor on his various campaigns so that he could relax in the evenings playing quartets.
There are more than 300 compositions that were at one time or another published, much of which is chamber music. He wrote more than 70 string quartets, 35 quintets, perhaps as many as 15 string trios, but also several works for winds and strings. Of Krommer's string quartets, the famous chamber music critic Wilhelm Altmann, in his Handbook for String Quartet Players, writes, “Krommer knew how to write for string instruments and as a result what he wrote sounds brilliant.”
Here is a first class work, fresh-sounding and appealing, which would make a great program choice as an alternative to the inevitable Haydn or Mozart.