And now we'd like to discuss Beethoven's Fifth Movement of his opus 130 String Quartet,
the Cavatina. For string quartet players and for audiences alike, this is
one of the most beautiful, the most touching movements ever written.
It was also that for Beethoven himself. It was said that when he wrote
the Cavatina, he cried. And when he heard the Schuppanzigh
String Quartet play it for the first time, he also wept. It's an extraordinary
movement for many ways. But the beginning gives you feeling
almost that you are in a place of religious worship. It has that sort of
deeply-felt choral feeling to it. I wonder what your feelings are
about this movement. I have to say, you know, I've
heard this piece performed, and I've heard recordings of it.
And this movement, I think -- maybe you guys can also relate to this.
But, it's -- it's a movement that I've always wanted to play. So, it's really
quite wonderful to have the opportunity to work on this.
Well, why don't we just hear the very beginning of it,
the very first few bars of it.
[MUSIC]
And so, you have just heard these wonderfully moving
opening bars of the Cavatina, which will now segue
into something completely unexpected-- really otherworldly--
before returning to the choral section, which again, ends
in a very touching way, this movement.
It's such a remarkable movement, that NASA, which in 1977 sent up
Voyager, the spacecraft that is now out there someplace in space --
and in the wish that maybe some extraterrestrial life would run into
it sometime in the future, they chose to include a couple
of dozen representations of our civilization. And so, there
was a folk song, and there was popular music. And as the very last
item, the very last musical item for the musical menu,
they included the Cavatina, from Beethoven's opus 130.
And I would think that this is the height of our civilization.
And so I think it's very apt that it was included.
It was performed by the Budapest String Quartet, incidentally.
And so, the Budapest String Quartet has the honor and privilege
of being out there in space right now. But now the movement segues
unexpectedly into something that is totally different. And the lower
three voices begin to play these pulsating notes together.
And overlaid, the first violin plays something that in no way
has anything ensemble-wise to do with these pulsating notes.
I think only two or three or four notes actually hook up exactly with--
of all the notes that you play, and there are a couple dozen notes--
that actually hook up with the pulsating notes. And I've always had the impression
that you, as the first violin, Miho, are someone who's lost, you know?
In a desperate situation emotionally. And it's gripping, because
as a listener, to hear it, it's as if the world has become unhinged.
And so, what is your impression, playing this? Actually playing this
bizarre tune? I think we oft-- musicians,
we always think about a beautiful sound. But in this instance, in this
beklemmt section, you really want to go for that, the heavy of heart,
and the oppressed. And so, it kind of gives you license
to explore the kinds of sounds that are more -- maybe not as human,
or more ghostly, or otherworldly. And to kind of, in a way,
enjoy the struggle of what the music is presenting.
Yes. And you mentioned the word beklemmt, which is what
Beethoven has written over this, "beklemmt" in German, which is
a word that's very difficult to translate into English. To come near to it,
it's anguish, or -- anguished, or stifling, or oppressed. All those things together.
So, that's the first violin, sort of wandering, and -- you know, disoriented
and unhinged. And what is it like for the three of you to be playing
this pulsating, spooky rhythm underneath? It's really interesting for us as a group,
because we start the spooky, triplet rhythm two bars before Miho comes in
with her beklemmt. And before that, Zoe has this glorious melody that
kind of rises up a little bit. And it sounds hopeful. And then
right when we start the triplets, it feels as if we get sucked down
into the Earth, and you're kind of in limbo, almost. Or, in an abyss.
And you're just feeling like, "Whoa, what just happened?"
And it's a feeling that you don't get in any other
string quartet. And for string players, vibrato
is this incredibly expressive tool. But it becomes just as expressive
when you choose not to use it. And in this case, for those triplets,
that's exactly what you're doing. You're avoiding the use of vibrato,
aren't you? We're starting with zero vibrato,
at that moment where suddenly -- you know, we feel like the ground has shifted.
And when Miho enters, beklemmt, and we're no longer just in unison,
we add just the faintest, I think, just tremble, maybe, of vibrato.
But it's not a normal or beautiful or generous.
It's kind of a near death experience, isn't it?
Yeah. Unstable. So, let us hear this section now, please.
[MUSIC]
Arnold SteinhardtPerformance Faculty
Dr. Mia ChungInstructor of Interpretive Analysis
