Complete Chamber Music for Strings

by Felix Mendelssohn

"As a composer of chamber music Mendelssohn claims greatness almost without qualification. . . . He had a complete mastery of his medium . . . and an intensity of interest in pure music that renders his quartets, in particular, works of integrity in thought and statement." — Grove's
These masterpieces in the chamber music repertoire are works perennially popular with players and listeners. All of them have been recorded and many appear frequently on chamber music programs. They have been reproduced directly from the famous and scholarly Breitkopf & Härtel series, an eminently readable edition, and contain all of Mendelssohn's chamber music for strings, excluding only those pieces with piano.
The following works are
Octet in E-flat Major, Op. 20Quintet No. 1 in A Major, Op. 18Quintet No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 87Quartet No. 1 in E-flat Major, Op. 12Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 13
Quartet No. 3 in D Major, Op. 44, No. 1Quartet No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 44, No. 2Quartet No. 5 in E-flat Major, Op. 44, No. 3Quartet No. 6 in F Minor, Op. 80Four Pieces for String Quartet, Op. 81The music has been reproduced in a size large enough to be read easily, and there is ample space between staves and in the margins for any notes, harmonic analyses, fingerings or annotations that you may want to record on the score. The edition is practical for almost any use, whether as a study guide, a reference, or just a companion for your greater musical enjoyment.

288 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1978

About the author

Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, born, and generally known in English-speaking countries, as Felix Mendelssohn (3 February 1809 – 4 November 1847) was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period.
A grandson of the philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, Felix Mendelssohn was born into a prominent Jewish family, although initially he was raised without religion and was later baptised as a Lutheran Christian. Mendelssohn was recognised early as a musical prodigy, but his parents were cautious and did not seek to capitalise on his talent.
Early success in Germany, where he also revived interest in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, was followed by travel throughout Europe. Mendelssohn was particularly well received in Britain as a composer, conductor and soloist, and his ten visits there – during which many of his major works were premiered – form an important part of his adult career. His essentially conservative musical tastes, however, set him apart from many of his more adventurous musical contemporaries such as Franz Liszt, Richard Wagner and Hector Berlioz. The Leipzig Conservatoire (now the University of Music and Theatre Leipzig), which he founded, became a bastion of this anti-radical outlook.
Mendelssohn's work includes symphonies, concerti, oratorios, piano music and chamber music. His most-performed works include his Overture and incidental music for A Midsummer Night's Dream, the Italian Symphony, the Scottish Symphony, the overture The Hebrides, his Violin Concerto, and his String Octet. After a long period of relative denigration due to changing musical tastes and anti-Semitism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, his creative originality has now been recognised and re-evaluated. He is now among the most popular composers of the Romantic era.