The String Quartet No. 23 in

F major F major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative minor is D minor and its parallel minor is F minor F minor is a minor scale based on F, consis ...

, K. 590, was written in June 1790 by

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

. It is the third of the Prussian Quartets. There are four movements: # Allegro moderato, in F major # Andante, in C major # Menuetto: Allegretto # Allegro, in F major The quartet was written for and dedicated to the King of Prussia,

Friedrich Wilhelm II Frederick William II may refer to: * Frederick William II, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg (1603–1669) * Frederick William II, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (1687–1749) * Frederick William II, Prince of Nassau-Siegen (1706–1734) * Freder ...

, an amateur

cellist The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, D3 ...

. It is written in a similar style to the quartets of

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

. Mozart and his friend Karl Lichnowsky met the king in

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

in April 1789. Mozart played before the king in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

on 26 May of that year. The Menuetto is distinguished by the evolution, in the main minuet sections, from a fairly conventional theme to a highly chromatic, driven transition. A typical performance of the quartet lasts 23 to 25 minutes.

References

External links

* *
Recording
by the

Orion String Quartet The Orion String Quartet is a string quartet formed in 1987. It is the quartet-in-residence of New York's Mannes College The New School for Music. The members are Todd and Daniel Phillips, brothers who alternate on first and second violin, violis ...

from the

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts, which houses significant examples of European, Asian, and American art. Its collection includes paintings, sculpture, tapestries, and decorative arts. It was founded ...

MP3 MP3 (formally MPEG-1 Audio Layer III or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III) is a coding format for digital audio developed largely by the Fraunhofer Society in Germany, with support from other digital scientists in the United States and elsewhere. Origin ...

format #23 1790 compositions Compositions in F major {{chamber-composition-stub