Janacek: String Quartet No. 1, "Kreutzer Sonata"

Category: String Quartet, Two Violins, Viola, and Cello ** Title: String Quartet No. 1 "Kreutzer Sonata" ** Composer: Leos Janacek ** Arrangers: Leos Faltus and Milos Stedron ** Parts only, no score ** Publisher: Barenreiter Verlag URTEXT ** Difficulty: A6.

Inspired by Leo Tolstoys controversial novella The Kreutzer Sonata (which was itself partially inspired by Beethovens eponymous piano and violin sonata), Janaceks String Quartet No. 1 breaks free of traditional harmonic and formal structures. In general, Janacek was not known for staying within those traditional parameters, but in this quartet it is particularly pronounced. Through the music, Janacek is able to communicate the ideas of repression, psychological disturbance, and violence that form the core of Tolstoys story. It is, in spite of its connection with such a bleak work of literature, a remarkably beautiful piece, albeit a dark one.