1 To some, Joseph Haydn (1732‐1809) is known familiarly as “the


1
To
some,
Joseph
Haydn
(1732‐1809)
is
known
familiarly
as
“the
father
of
the
symphony,”1
but
his
contributions
to
the
musical
world
have
also
influenced
other
forms
including
operas,
oratorios,
piano
sonatas,
piano
trios,
masses,
and
string
quartets.
While
Haydn
is
remembered
for
his
orchestral
works,
having
written
over
100
symphonies,
his
knowledge
and
understanding
in
that
area
allowed
him
to
develop
the
string
quartet
in
many
imaginative
ways.2
From
his
first
quartets
where
the
first
violin
part
is
very
brilliant
and
the
accompaniment
secondary,
Haydn
developed
his
quartets
with
thematic
story
telling
devices
where
each
part
is
highlighted
yet
works
together
with
the
other
members
of
the
ensemble.
This
is
true
in
his
opus
33
string
quartets.
Haydn
described
the
opus
33
set
of
six
quartets
as
being
written
“in
an
entirely
new,
special
way
“
and
all
have
acquired
endearing
nicknames.3
The
fact
that
Haydn’s
quartet,
Opus
33,
Number
2,
has
acquired
“The
Joke”
subtitle
suggests
that
the
piece
in
its
entirety
is
be
quite
comical.
In
it
can
be
found
thematic
elaboration
(musical
subjects
that
appear
to
return
frequently
and
in
numerous
forms)
abrupt
dynamic
changes,
half‐cadences
where
full
ones
are
expected,
and
special
effects
in
the
strings,
but
the
real
joke
lies
in
the
culmination
of
the
piece
at
the
end
of
the
fourth
movement.
1
James
Webster
and
Georg
Feder,
Haydn
(New
York:
MacMillan
Publishers
Limited,
2002),
1.
2
Haydn’s
greatest
contribution
to
chamber
music
was
his
development
of
the
string
quartet.
K.
Marie
Stolba,
The
Development
of
Western
Music:
A
History
(New
York:
McGraw
Hill,
1998),
374.
3
Haydn
uses
the
phrase
“written
in
a
new
and
special
way”
in
his
letters
to
various
potential
subscribers;
which
has
caused
a
debate
as
to
whether
he
used
the
phrase
as
a
selling
point
or
if
he
knew
about
his
new
use
of
structure
in
his
writing
and
the
development
of
figures
capable
of
expansion
and
growth.
Rosemary
Hughes,
Haydn
String
Quartets
(1966;
repr.,
London:
British
Broadcasting
Corporation,
1980),
28.
2
When
examining
a
composer’s
work
it
is
important
to
understand
their
life
experiences
and
their
influences.
Franz
Joseph
Haydn
was
born
in
Rohrau,
Lower
Austria
on
March
31,
1732.
His
father
was
a
wheelwright
and
his
mother
a
cook,
but
they
were
also
very
musical.
It
is
said
that
his
father
“played
the
harp
without
reading
a
note
of
music;
his
mother
sang
the
melodies”.4
Franz
Joseph
performed
with
his
family
on
many
occasions
for
the
neighborhood.
His
uncle,
Johann
Mathias
Franck,
who
was
also
the
school
principal
in
Hainburg
and
the
church
choir
director,
heard
him
and
was
so
impressed
that
he
insisted
Haydn
come
live
with
him
to
harness
his
musical
skill
in
1738.
The
following
year
Haydn
was
recruited
to
serve
as
choirboy
at
the
cathedral
in
Stephansdom,
in
Vienna.
There
he
learned
“the
art
of
singing,
the
harpsichord
and
the
violin
by
very
good
masters,”5
but
there
was
little
theory
training
other
than
singing
in
solfege
and
playing
harpsichord
with
figured
bass.
Haydn’s
voice
broke
in
1748
and
was
dismissed
from
choir
school.
6
However
he
remained
at
the
school
until
1750
when
he
began
composing.
Haydn
spent
the
next
eleven
years
working
at
various
churches,
giving
lessons,
performing
for
various
shows
and
composing
freelance.
The
composing
did
not
meet
with
much
success
because
there
was
no
music
publishing
industry
in
Habsburg.
In
1778
Haydn
was
able
to
get
his
instrumental
music
published
when
4
Franz
Joseph
Haydn
was
the
second
of
twelve
children
in
his
family;
there
were
three
boys
and
nine
girls.
His
parents’
love
of
music
influenced
him,
as
well
as
on
his
two
brothers;
Michael,
1737‐1806,
was
a
famous
composer
and
Johan
Evangelist,
1743‐1805,
who
was
a
tenor
in
Esterhazy
court.
Webster
and
Feder,
2.
5
Ibid,
3.
6
Ibid,
7.
A
“broken”
voice
means
that
the
singer
has
gone
through
a
stage
of
puberty
in
which
the
voice
lowers
which
makes
it
difficult
to
sing
high
treble
notes
that
are
required
of
boy
choirs.
3
Artaria
&
Company
expanded
into
music
printing.7
Haydn’s
first
publication
was
in
1779
and
was
a
set
of
six
keyboard
sonatas.
In
his
contract
with
Artaria,
Haydn
was
unable
to
sell
his
own
music.
This
changed
on
New
Year’s
Day
1779
when
he
sent
a
letter
to
J.C.
Lavater
asking
him
to
publicize
his
newly
compiled
set
of
string
quartets
that
were
written
“in
an
entirely
new,
special
way”.
These
quartets
are
known
as
Haydn’s
String
Quartets,
Op.
33.
The
comedic
aspects
of
the
“Joke”
string
quartet
can
be
seen
in
this
musical
analysis
of
the
piece.
Within
the
string
quartet
Op.
33,
Haydn
uses
“thematic
elaboration”
as
the
main
feature
for
each
movement,
which
can
be
humorous
in
some
cases.
“Thematic
elaboration”
refers
to
a
method
of
taking
subjects
of
the
exposition
and
developing
and
reassembling
the
sections
in
unexpected
ways.
8
The
first
movement
of
the
quartet
shows
this
idea
very
prominently
throughout.
Example
1
shows
the
original
subject,
in
E‐flat
major
and
very
upbeat
and
tonal
sounding.
While
Example
2
shows
the
same
subject
this
time
used
to
confuse
the
tonal
center
of
the
section
because
there
isn’t
a
clear
transition
to
a
new
key
or
a
definite
cadence.
It
ultimately
leads
into
an
addition
variation
as
seen
in
the
C‐
minor
section
as
seen
in
Example
3.
7
Ibid,
22.
8
Karl
Geiringer
and
Irene
Geiringer,
Haydn
A
Creative
Life
in
Music
(Los
Angeles:
University
of
California
Press,
1982),
284.
4
5
These
are
all
interesting
because
not
only
do
they
give
the
listener
a
feeling
of
content
by
returning
to
the
original
theme
of
the
section
but
they
also
add
a
sense
of
comedy
by
their
numerous
changes
and
the
unpredictability
of
their
changes.
The
second
movement
of
the
quartet
employs
a
couple
of
humorous
techniques.
Fro
example,
the
movement
starts
with
a
very
typical
cadential
structure
of
half
cadences
to
full
until
the
second
repeated
section
of
the
trio
at
mm.43
to
68.
Here
the
melody
continues
to
cadence
on
B
flat
which
is
the
V
chord
of
the
piece
making
each
a
half
cadence.
This
is
unusual
and
comical
due
to
the
sense
of
anticipation
that
is
created.
Haydn
builds
up
to
the
half
cadence
four
times
before
finally
resolving
it
the
tonic
chord
at
the
end
of
the
piece
(see
Example
4).
6
The
second
movement
also
incorporates
the
use
of
special
effects
such
as
a
slide
in
the
trio’s
subject
or
theme.
Here
the
first
violinist
slides
either
a
third
or
a
fourth
at
the
beginning
of
each
subject
(see
Example
5).
This
is
comical
because
during
Haydn’s
time,
stringed
instruments
were
to
place
their
finger
in
a
designated
area
to
achieve
a
certain
pitch,
then
lift
their
finger
off
7
the
string
and
place
it
on
the
next
pitch,
but
Haydn
uses
the
slide
for
the
section
to
sound
as
if
someone
is
wavering
and
staggering
about.
The
second
movement
of
the
piece
shows
the
subtle
comedy
of
the
piece.
The
third
section
or
Largo
section
of
the
quartet
has
been
called
“is
the
viola’s
finest
hour”9
which
is
comical
in
its
own
right
because
the
viola’s
purpose
primarily,
up
until
this
point,
was
to
accompany
the
violins
and
double
either
the
counter
melody
or
bassline,
or
simply
to
add
depth
to
the
chords.
However,
Haydn
highlights
the
viola
by
allowing
the
section
to
introduce
the
main
subject
characterized
by
the
slurred
quarter
notes,
dotted
eighth‐sixteenth
note
pattern
with
a
legato
quarter
note
cello
accompaniment
(see
Example
6).
It
is
also
important
to
mention
the
driving
sixteenth
note
passages
that
seem
to
fill
the
empty
spaces
in
the
melody
line;
this
is
a
trademark
of
Haydn’s
string
quartets
and
allows
for
a
constant
feeling
of
rhythm
and
back‐beat.
Another
comical
aspect
of
this
section
are
the
sudden
and
unexpected
dynamic
changes,
which
make
the
listener
lean
into
the
piano
moments
and
then
suddenly
leap
back
into
the
subito
9
Hans
Keller,
The
Great
Haydn
Quartets:
Their
Interpretation
(New
York:
George
Braziller,
Inc,
1986),
69.
It
is
said
that
when
Haydn
was
an
enthusiastic
viola
player,
and
when
he
traveled
he
only
brought
with
him
his
viola.
He
would
later
play
the
viola
with
Mozart
in
quartets.
8
forte
sections
(see
Example
7).
Between
the
melody
in
the
viola,
and
the
sudden
dynamic
changes,
the
third
movement
adds
another
comical
piece
to
the
string
quartet.
The
final
movement
is
where
the
true
comedy
lies
in
this
quartet;
here
Haydn
shows
the
listener
and
performer
how
far
he
has
stretched
the
limits
of
the
rondo.
The
first
repeated
section
introduces
the
subject
with
a
sparse
accompaniment
(see
example
8);
it
then
evolves
and
is
doubled
by
the
second
violins.
9
This
subject
can
be
heard
throughout
the
piece
in
the
first
violin
section;
the
subject
is
modified
in
tonality
with
each
entrance
until
the
end
of
the
piece.
In
measure
149
Haydn
adds
an
adagio
section,
which
sounds
like
a
slowed
dramatic
ending
but
he
continues
with
a
held
fermata
eighth
note
that
then
leads
to
another
presto
section.
The
original
subject
is
stated
again
here
with
a
grand
pause
five
times
until
the
triple
grand
pause
and
the
subject
is
played
once
more.
The
final
presto
section
is
so
comical
because
Haydn
makes
each
phrase
sound
as
if
it
could
be
the
end,
this
confuses
the
audience
as
when
to
clap,
especially
right
before
the
actual
ending
with
the
triple
grand
pause
(see
Example
9).
After
analyzing
the
music
it
is
clear
that
Haydn
found
clever
ways
to
add
humor
into
this
string
quartet.
From
“the
father
of
the
symphony”
to
the
composer
of
a
string
quartet
labeled
“The
Joke,”
Haydn
has
never
ceases
to
amaze
audiences
with
his
compositional
talents.
Certainly
his
light
hearted
string
quartet
shows
evidence
of
humor
in
each
of
its
sections
while
maintaining
a
sense
of
complexity
that
is
indicative
of
Haydn’s
approach
to
music.
10