Five pieces for String Quartet (1925) Erwin Schulhoff 1.Alla Valse viennese (allegro) 2. Alla Serenata (allegretto con moto) 3. Alla Czeca (molto allegro) 4. Alla Tango milonga (andante) 5. Alla Tarantella (prestissimo con fuoco) String Quartet in C Major, Op. 59, No. 3 L. Van Beethoven 1. Introduzione-Andante con moto 2. Allegro vivace Andantecon molto quasi Allegretto 3. Menuet6 grazioso 4. Allegro molto Cypress String Quartet Cecily Ward, violin - Tom Stone, violin Paul Wakabayashi, viola - Jennifer Kloetzel, cello Recorded September 28, 1997 Produced by Berkeley Citizen Viewed on Public Access in Berkeley, CA Copyright 1997 - All Rights Reserved Berkeley Citizen
See more of the series: Live Oak Concerts

Program Notes: Czech composer and pianist Erwin Schulhoff studied with Reger and Debussy. In 1918 he won the Mendelssohn Prize for composition. A versatile artist, Schulhoff's compositions have made references to Germanic Late Romanticism, Impressionism, Expressionism, Jazz, Neo-classicism, and traditional folk melodies.

The Third quartet in C major, called "Heroic" because of the solemnly heroic expression of the second theme of the first movement, is very close to the Fourth and Fifth Symphonies in thought and content. Even though no Russian melody is elaborated in this Quartet the second, slow movement in A minor is distinctly written in the Russian style.