Myslivecek, Josef

Preface

Josef Mysliveček

Three String Quintets

No. I in G major p.1 No.II in E-flat major p.15 No.III in C major p.32

(b. Prague, 9 March 1737 – d. Rome, 4 February 1781)

Preface

After moving to Italy from his native city of Prague in 1763, the composer Josef Mysliveček concentrated his greatest efforts on the genres of symphony and serious opera.1He was indeed the finest symphonist resident in Italy almost from the time he entered the country until his death in 1781, and as a composer of serious opera, he succeeded in bringing more new works into production during the period 1765-1780 than any other composer in Europe. 2 Nonetheless, he was also a significant composer of chamber music for a large variety of instrumental combinations, including quintets, quartets, and trios for string ensembles; trios and quintets for flute and strings; and sonatas for violin and bass or keyboard. Perhaps his greatest contributions to the repertory of chamber music are formed by his pioneering works for wind octet and string quintet. His six quintets, Op. 2 of ca. 1767, are indeed the earliest examples of string quintets for two violins, two violas, and two cellos known to have been published.3 It is possible that his interest was suggested by the frequent use of divided viola parts in his symphonies and overtures. The quintets published in this volume are from a later set of six probably composed in the early 1770s, likely identical to a set mentioned in a letter written by Mysliveček to his patron Count Vincenz von Waldstein from Naples on 14 September 1773. It was Mysliveček’s plan to publish the quintets in London with dedication to the count (a goal that was never realized).4 Mysliveček’s close association with the Mozart family is well known to music historians, and the amazing resemblance of mm. 24-28 of the first movement of Quintetto III to mm. 11-15 of the first movement of W. A. Mozart’s Violin Concerto in G major, K. 213, has been noted in the literature.5 It is quite possible that the young Mozart came into contact with these quintets during his meetings with Mysliveček in Italy between 1770 and 1773.

Both sets of Mysliveček quintets belong to a broad class of European music for stringed instruments that could be performed either by chamber ensembles or string orchestras. The title page of the Op. 2 quintets confirms this dual function quite explicitly,6 whereas the later set exhibits stylistic features idiomatic both for chamber or orchestral performance. Effects with quick repeated notes (or tremolo), for example in the upper string parts at mm. 17-20 and 86-89 of the second movement of Quintetto I and throughout the third movement of Quintetto II, seem to hint at better results with performance by a string orchestra. On the other hand, the intricate first violin part written for the second movement of Quintetto II and the contrapuntal excursions crafted for the third movement of Quintetto III seem better suited to chamber performance. The only evidence from the sources of the later set of Mysliveček

quintets concerning this topic is simply the sole designation “Quintetti” found for them in both; the alternate designation “Sinfonie,” as found in the Op. 2 set, is not present. The three quintets in this volume (G major, E-flat major, and C major) are preserved as the first, second, and third quintets in both of the surviving manuscripts: Modena, Biblioteca Estense