Musical Jokes

Program:

Joseph Haydn (1732–1809) — String Quartet in E-flat Major “The Joke”

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) — A Musical Joke

“The grounded roots of an ancient tree tower over the land, centering its weight through a sonorous trunk while the wind sends birds coasting through its branches, light and free, improvising each movement on the thermals.” Tonight’s concert lives inside that image: sturdy Classical form holds firm like deep roots, while clever surprises and comic turns lift the music into playful flight. Haydn’s “The Joke” and Mozart’s A Musical Joke show how the greatest Classical minds knew exactly when to laugh.

Haydn’s String Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 33 No. 2, is part of his famous Opus 33 set from 1781–82 — the so-called “Russian” quartets, written “in a new and special way.” These quartets replaced the old minuet with the quick, mischievous scherzo and filled every movement with clever twists and…