Joseph Bologne (1745-1799)

Nationality: French | Caribbean | Afro-Caribbean

Born: December 25, 1745, Baillif, Guadeloupe Died: June 9, 1799, Paris (age 53)

wikipedia | imslp

Quartet in g minor

(for violin, viola, cello and harpsichord)

		I.	Allegro
		II.	Rondo - Minore

Note: Unpublished transcription of String Quartet Op. 1 No. 3

glossary

allegro [I]—fast, lively tempo. From the Italian word for cheerful or gay.
chamber music, Kammermusik [G], musique de chambre [F], musica da camera [I], musica cameralis [L]—"Classical Music" for a small ensemble, generally 8 or fewer players with a canonical emphasis on 3-6 players. explore
minore, mineur—minor, i.e. minor key. Often used to mark a sectional key transition from major to minor as in a trio or a theme and variations
piano quartet, Klavierquartett [G], Quatuor avec piano [F]—a ensemble (work) comprising violin, viola, cello and piano. Most of the great Classical and Romantic composers produced one or more works for this combination of which many are masterworks of chamber music.
quartet, quatuor [F], quartett [G], quartetto [I], cuarteto [S]—ensemble or work for four players the most important examples being the string quartet and the piano quartet
rondo—sectional movement form featuring a recurring refrain between contrasting episodes in a variety of plans, a typical one being ABACABA (A is the refrain; B and C are episodes). Often used for finales.
transcription, transcribe—To re-score a work for an ensemble of instruments different from the original version. Typical examples include orchestrating piano or chamber works and visa versa. Within the realm of chamber music, a work for winds might be transcribed for strings, a symphony into a string quartet, a trio featuring a clarinet substituting a viola. One interesting question is: who made the transcription, the original composer? One interesting effect is that the transcription may become favored over the original. One of the most curious transcriptions in all of chamber music is Schoenberg's "Verklärte Nacht", transcribed from string sextet to piano trio with amazing success by one of his students.