Page:Rolland - Beethoven, tr. Hull, 1927.pdf/212

 oven keeps his music in rather higher registers. The Adagio is not so Beethovenish as the slow movement of No. 1, but it contains an episode marked Allegro. The Finale is full of spirit, but it is not the Beethoven in the "unbuttoned" mood of the later works. There is some effective work for the G string on the Ist Violin, for Paganini had already cast his glamour over Europe.

This beautiful quartet, composed a year later than the first two, already points to the maturity of the second period, especially in the first movement. The Andante opens with a lovely melody for the 2nd Violin on the G string; restraint and broadness in playing should be the player's aim here. Parry refers to the fine balance of form in this Quartet in his article in Groves' Dictionary. The Scherzo is here marked Maggiore—Minore—Maggiore. The Presto is full of Beethoven spirit and handling, in one passage in particular, having spaciousness, which is such a striking feature in the final quartets.