Tokyo String Quartet ... March 3, 1983

Abstract

"In spite of childhood displays of genius and marvellous tales of inspiration, composers--like other murtals--must acquire the craft of their chosen profession and travel the same road to self-discovery. It is, of course, the concentration of both native gifts and solid craftsmanship that distinguishes the truly great composers from lesser lights. Yet in a sense, because of the organic nature of the creative arts, the slate is wiped clean at the onset of each new project. Finding a solution to one musical problem does not assure its application to a different context; one successful compositional venture does not guarantee another. The composer must prove himself again and again. He has, on the other hand, the opportunity to apply time after time what he has learned from the example of others and from his own previous efforts. The "learning" process is typically most conspicuous in the early works of a composer or in those pieces that represent his covering new ground. Tonight's program of string quartets by Beethoven, Brahms, and Berg provides three striking examples of the "composer in training." Each work presented here represents one of the early published efforts of its composer to assert his con1nand of this important genre and medium. This observation is meant in no way to minimize the artistic value of the three pieces. Each is a testament to the brilliance of its creator and all the more astonishing when aware of its place in its composer's path to self-discovery."