Felix Mendelssohn was bent on forging connections between the musical world of his time and the music of past generations. This program echoes a similar bridge between movements of Mozart’s high classical String Quartet in D Minor and movements of Mendelssohn’s Opus 44 String Quartet. Available on USUO On-Demand.

There is no doubt that Mozart’s String Quartet in D minor was an homage to the quartets of Joseph Haydn. The series of six quartets, of which the D minor quartet is a part, show Mozart at the peak of his creative power. Unusual for the time, they were written solely on the basis of inspiration, not commission.

Although it was actually the last of the three opus 44 quartets to be composed, it seems that Mendelssohn was particularly proud of his Opus 44, which may be the reason it was published as the first of the set. The final movement of Mendelssohn’s quartet in D Major is a driving Saltarello (a 16th century dance) reminiscent of the final movement of his Italian symphony.

Estimated concert length: 30 minutes