Anton Rubinstein - String Quartet No. 4, Op. 47 No.1 (1856)

Anton Grigorevich Rubinstein (Russian: Антон Григорьевич Рубинштейн, tr. Anton Grigorevich Rubinshteyn; November 28 [O.S. November 16] 1829 – November 20 [O.S. November 8] 1894) was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor who became a pivotal figure in Russian culture when he founded the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. He was the elder brother of Nikolai Rubinstein who founded the Moscow Conservatory.

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String Quartet No. 4, Op. 17, No. 1 (1856)
Dedication: Michał Wielhorski (1788-1856)

1. Moderato con moto (0:00)
2. Allegro non troppo (8:42)
3. Andante con moto (13:05)
4. Allegro assai (20:08)

Reinhold Quartett

Details by Edition Silvertrust:

“While Rubinstein’s first set of three quartets, his Op.17, showed little influence of his Russian homeland, this is not the case in his next three, the Op. 47 which appeared in 1857 and which clearly do show such influence. The main theme to the first movement of Op. 47 No.1, Moderato, is well-suited to a quartet and the lyrical second subject is also quite pleasing. The music is well-written and beautiful sounding. The second movement, a pounding Allegro, is clearly a kind of Russian folk dance. The third movement, an Andante, opens with a beautiful and expressive viola solo, a lied in the form of a plaint. It is followed by a restless second section. Again, in the finale, Allegro assai, we hear echoes of Russian folk music.”Wilhelm Altmann, the famous chamber music expert, writing in his Chamber Music Handbook

Anton Rubinstein (1829-1894) was one of the great piano virtuosi of the 19th century with a technique said to rival that of Liszt. He also gained renown as a composer and conductor. Rubinstein was one of those rare concert virtuosi whose contribution to music went far beyond performing. In 1862, he founded the St. Petersburg Conservatory and served as its first director. His efforts in developing Russian musical talent were perhaps the greatest of any single individual. Not only did he introduce European educational methods but he also established standards that were as rigorous as any conservatory in Europe.

While Rubinstein's compositions were extremely popular during his lifetime, after his death, they were criticized because they showed "no Russian influence" and were viewed as derivatives of prominent European contemporaries, especially of Mendelssohn. Despite the fact that commentator after commentator has repeated this assertion, almost as if it were a litany, it is nonetheless not entirely accurate. Although he was not part of the so-called emergent Russian national school as led by Rimsky Korsakov, it is not true that there is no Russian influence to be found in his music. This influence is just not as pronounced as in the works of Borodin, Mussorgsky or of Korsakov himself. However, listeners to Rubinstein's music, including String Quartet No.2, will not only hear the influence of Mendelssohn, but also hear Russian melody and rhythm of the sort used by Borodin and others 20 years later.

Rubinstein was a prolific composer writing in nearly every genre. Chamber music figures prominently amongst his works. He wrote 10 string quartets, at least 5 piano trios, a string quintet and a string sextet as well as several other chamber works.