String Quartet in Eb 'The Joke' - Haydn

Background

• The string quartet was a Classical-era genre 'invented' by Haydn
• Violin I is allocated most of the melodic interest - with remaining instruments providing support - melody-dominated homophony

Rhythm and Metre

• The time signature is compound duple (6/8) apart from the slow Adagio section near the end which is simple duple (2/4)
• Because of the speed of the music, note lengths are no shorter than a quaver except for a few demisemiquavers and semiquavers in the Adagio
• Rests play an important role, especially in setting up the jokes at the end

Melody

• Phrasing is frequently periodic, in other words balanced two- and four-bar phrases, characteristic of Classical music
• There is much stepwise (conjunct) movement with the occasional larger interval
• Chromatic notes are introduced
• Haydn uses the occasional ornament and appoggiatura

Harmony

• Functional, with frequent cadences, often preceded by the supertonic (II) chord, as in bars 7-8
• Dominant pedals
• Dissonances

(Harmony continued)

• Second inversion chords are left unresolved for humorous effect

Tonality

• The key is Eb major, defined by cadences and pedals
• Modulation is limited and involves Ab and F minor in the first episode, with occasionaly brief excursions to Bb

Structure

• Rondo form
• Opening 8 bars frequently recur
• At first, it is part of a rounded binary structure: A/BA with repeats

(Structure continued)

• A/BA
• C
• ABA (no repeats)
• C1 (removal of Db's avoids modulation)
• A
• Adagio
• A with phrases seperated by rests

Resources/Texture

• Intruments (strings) used conventionally (bowed throughout)
• Melody-dominated homophony
• Variety in texture is managed through alternations between differing numbers of parts, for example four parts at opening, followed by just the three upper parts

(Resources/Texture continued)

• Haydn also uses:
• Pedal points of both sustained notes and articulated quavers
• Upper two parts in 3rds and 6ths
• Inverted pedals in top part with lower parts exchanging melody lines
• Double-stopping in the Adagio
• Dynamics and articulation indications are detailed