Puccini String Quartet “Crisantemi”

Puccini himself acknowledged that his true talent lay "only in the theatre," and so his non-operatic works are relatively few. In 1890 he composed I Crisantemi (The Chrysanthemums) in response to the sudden death of a friend and patron, Amadeo di Savoia, Duke of Aosta, a young and ambitious Italian prince at age 44. He was selected to assume the throne of the King of Spain after the Glorious Revolution of 1868. In Italy and some European coutries, chrysanthemums symbolize death and are used only for funerals or on graves. Puccini composed this single-movement elegy in one night. The quartet follows da capo form—A-B-A. It's a sentimental and emotional lament which Puccini reused and reworked in his opera "Manon Lescaut," three years later in 1893.

Schumann Piano Quintet Op. 44 in E-flat Major

The piece takes the instrumental composition of a string quartet with a piano, making it one of the most often played and widely loved quintets of this form. It is in E-flat major, which Schumann likes, and it is brilliant. Although carefully constructed, it is unexpectedly fun, friendly, and easy to understand.

In 1842, "the year of chamber music," he completed three string quartets in July and immediately started this quintet, which was completed on October 1. He even wrote a piano trio after this piano quintet. It was dedicated to his beloved wife, piano virtuoso Clara Schumann. She was scheduled to perform the piano part for the first private performance on December 6, 1842. However, she fell ill, and Felix Mendelssohn stepped in to sight-read the piano part.

Mendelssohn advised Schumann, and as a result, Schumann made various modifications. Clara Schumann gave the first public premiere on January 8, 1843, at the Gewandhaus.

The first movement is a Sonata form, which begins with a powerful, energetic brilliant first theme and an enchantingly romantic second theme. The piano plays a significant role

The second movement is like a funeral march, as Schumann described in the music "march mode," but the format is close to free Rondo. In the 3rd movement, Scherzo has two trios. The main element of the dashing Scherzo is a rushing scale going up and down. Two trios have contrasting episodes. The second trio is a manic dance that goes through many keys, and it is technically quite challenging for strings.

The fourth movement has a free sonata form with some canons and fugato passages.

Septet in Eb Major, op. 20

When Beethoven composed his Septet, op. 20 in 1799, he chose the unusual combination of four string and three wind instruments. The public premiere was heard in 1800 in the Burgtheater in Vienna, at a concert that he organized for his benefit. The piece gained the favor of the public, and it became one of his most popular works. Several years later, he arranged the piece for clarinet, cello and piano as opus 38.

With the variety of instruments used, there is considerable interplay and conversation between them. Each instrument receives a spotlight.

Going beyond the usual three or four movements for a string quartet or symphony, he expanded the work to six movements. The key of E-flat major is friendly to the winds.  Beethoven is recognized as helping to change the more sedate Minuet movement to the faster Scherzo; this work contains both. The theme and variations in the fourth movement contains five variations and a coda ending section. The scherzo movement is notable for featuring the horn and high cello writing.