Sergei Taneyev's String Quartet No.9 in A Major is the third of three string quartets he composed between 1880 and 1885 and before he wrote his String Quartet No.1Allegro moderato is sunny and slightly Russian sounding. Tchaikovsky, whom Taneyev asked to review his manuscript, wrote on it that the movement was very elegant. The second movement, Andante, is quite lyrical and song like. Tchaikovsky especially liked the lively Russian-sounding third movement, marked Scherzo, Allegro con fuoco. The trio section is calmer and provides an excellent contrast. The Finale, Allegro giocoso, is a modern version of a rondo characterized by its rhythmically interesting main subject.
Sergei Taneyev (1856-1915) is one of the greatest Russian composers from the last half of the 19th and early 20th centuries and probably, from this group, the one whose music is the least known in the West. Taneyev came from an aristocratic family that patronized the arts and when Sergei's talent became apparent, his father sent him to the newly opened Moscow Conservatory at the age of 10. His main teachers there were Nicolai Rubinstein for piano and Tchaikovsky for composition. Although he became a brilliant pianist, Taneyev opted for a career as a composer and teacher and soon became a professor at the Conservatory. His fame both as a teacher and as a composer quickly spread. Among his many students were Glière, Rachmaninov, Gretchaninov, Scriabin and Medtner. In Russian concert halls, one always finds a bust of Taneyev alongside those of Mozart, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms and Tchaikovsky. Sadly, the fame of this outstanding composer has not spread beyond his homeland. Influenced by Tchaikovsky, Taneyev preferred to write "pure" music rather than Russian-sounding or so-called "nationalistic" music based on Russian folk melodies. As such, he remained outside of the famous Nationalist School headed by Rimsky-Korsakov at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, and his music sounds markedly different from that of Rimsky and his famous students such as Borodin and Glazunov.
Our world premiere edition was made from the score by our senior editors Tomasz Golinski and Raymond Silvertrust.This is a magnificient work, in our opinion a masterpiece deserving of concert performance and the attention of amateurs. We are very proud to have made this work available and warmly recommend it to your attention
