ENTARTETE MUSIK

PETER LUNDIN listens to the
'undesired' quartets of Pavel Haas

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Haas composed his three string quartets over a period of 18 years. When following their musical development, one can easily spot that Hass' compositional craft grows and that he was fully aware of the musical trends of the period in which he lived.

The String Quartet No. 1 in C sharp minor, op 3 (1920) was written when Haas was still a student at the Academy, possibly as an exercise in form and musical construction. The music is quite lyrical and consonantly airing a romantic idiom, not least by looking back at Smetana. [Listen - track 1, 0:00 - 0:59.] Its 12 minutes are set up in a simple AB form, worked out through distinctive counterpoint. Hindemith and Milhaud have been quoted as influences. This might be true, but I can't really find any close similarities. The way in which Hass uses one musical idea when composing this work clearly shows his lack of skill at this stage. The music is straightforward, and is thus played by the quartet without loss of any tension and displaying the musical idea. I would certainly like to hear it on the concert stage - its shortness makes it an ideal filler for many programs.

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