BEETHOVEN String Quartet No. 10 in E-flat major (Op. 74) ’Harp’ Score

“Ludwig van Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 10 in E-flat major, Op. 74, was written in 1809 and is nicknamed the “Harp“ quartet. The nickname “Harp“ refers to the characteristic pizzicato sections in the allegro of the first movement, where pairs of members of the quartet alternate notes in an arpeggio, reminiscent of the plucking of a harp. Like many nicknames for Beethoven’s works, this was created by the publisher. The first movement, of about ten minutes duration, is one of the best examples of Beethoven’s management of musical tension. The short adagio introduction (24 bars long) is not tightly thematically integrated with the rest of the movement; it serves a similar function to the introduzione of the first movement of Op 59, No 3. The main motifs of the allegro are the lyrical melody appearing several bars from the beginning, and the pizzicato arpeggios played by two instruments accompanied by repeating quavers played by the other two. At first, these two themes appear thematically and rhythmically u