弦乐四重奏的演奏者所需的技巧其实不下于独奏者，尤其是二十世纪的曲目，从德布西、巴尔托克、拉威尔等作品中，对演奏者要求的演奏难度绝对不比协奏曲简单，而且在四重奏成员对音乐内容的了解以及合奏的默契上的要求更为严苛，因此团员除了要拥有自己的特色以外，还要保有为团体付出牺牲的心情。因此成功的弦乐四重奏团，往往不是老师与学生的组合，就是同校同学，要不就是一家人。要训练出好的四重奏团，当然有必备的方法，其中最出名的当然属Flonzaley四重奏团的第二小提琴手A.Pochon所写的“弦乐四重奏教科书（A Progressive Method of String Quartet Playing）”。另外，匈牙利愣纳四重奏创始人愣纳（J.Lener）所写的“弦乐四重奏的技术（The Technique of String Quartet Playing）”也相当重要。匈牙利作曲家拉萨（L.Lajtha）所写的“弦乐四重奏的五首练习曲（5 Etudes pour Quatuor a Cordess）”是针对四重奏的节拍、音量、速度、双因、琶音的训练。理论方面的书籍，诺顿（M. Norton）的“弦乐四重奏的演奏艺术（Art Of String Quartet Playing）”，以及史特拉顿（Stratton）与法郎克（Frank）所合写的“室内乐演奏（The Playing of Chamber Music）”对提升弦乐四重奏的欣赏与认知相当重要，喜欢钻研弦乐四重奏的人不妨找来看看。
弦乐四重奏经典录音
基本篇
海顿
弦乐四重奏31-36 Mosaiques四重奏团 Astree E 8784 新版唱片圣经编号1112 企鹅三星带花
弦乐四重奏第50-56号 林赛四重奏团 ASV CDDCA 853 新版唱片圣经编号1114 企鹅三星带花
The following set of string quartets is generally referred to as Beethoven's Late String Quartets, including the Grosse Fuge (which also exists in a piano transcription, opus 134):
Opus 127: String Quartet No. 12 in E flat major (1825)
Opus 130: String Quartet No. 13 in B flat major (1825)
Opus 131: String Quartet No. 14 in C sharp minor (1826)
Opus 132: String Quartet No. 15 in A minor (1825)
Opus 133: Große Fuge in B flat major for string quartet (1826), originally the finale to op. 130
Opus 135: String Quartet No. 16 in F major (1826)
OverviewBeethoven composed these quartets in the sequence 12, 15, 13, 14, 16, with quartets 15 and 13 being written simultaneously[citation needed]. The first three of the quartets (numbers 12, 13 and 15) were commissioned in 1822 by Prince Nicholas Galitzin, who in a letter dated 9 November 1822 offered to pay Beethoven: "..what you think proper" for the three works. In his reply of 25 January 1823, Beethoven stated his price: 50 Ducats for each opus.[1]
[edit] AppraisalThese six quartets (counting the Große Fuge) comprise the last major, completed compositions by Beethoven, and are widely considered to be among the greatest musical compositions of all time.[2] The musicologist Theodor Adorno, in particular, thought highly of them,[3] and Igor Stravinsky described the Große Fuge as "an absolutely contemporary piece of music that will be contemporary forever".[4] Wagner, when reflecting on Op. 131's first movement, said that it "reveals the most melancholy sentiment expressed in music".[5] Also, it is said that upon listening to a performance of the Op. 131 quartet, Schubert remarked, "After this, what is left for us to write?"[citation needed]
Some of the most popular or widely acclaimed works for string quartet include:
> Joseph Haydn's 68 string quartets, in particular Op.64, No.5 ("The Lark").
> Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's 23 string quartets, including his Haydn Quartets and Prussian Quartets, and in particular K.465 ("Dissonance")
> Ludwig van Beethoven's sixteen quartets are some of the most highly acclaimed. His String Quartets Nos. 1-6, Op.18, are thought to demonstrate a certain mastery of the classical string quartet form as developed by Haydn and Mozart. The next few, the "Rasumovsky" Quartets as well as the Op.74, "Harp" and Op.95, "Serioso" quartets, expanded upon the form and incorporated what can be characterized as intensely emotional content. Finally, the late quartets include his last five quartets and the Große Fuge, which stand as some of the composer's last completed works.
> Franz Schubert's string quartets No.12 in C minor, "Quartettsatz", No.13 in A minor "Rosamunde", No.14 in D minor, "Death and the Maiden" and his final No.15 in G major.
> Felix Mendelssohn's String Quartet No.2 (early example of cyclic form)[9]
> Robert Schumann's three string quartets
> Johannes Brahms's three string quartets
> Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's String Quartet No.1 in D major, Op.11, known for its second movement "Andante cantabile".
> Bedrich Smetana's String Quartet No.1 in E minor, "From my Life". Widely considered the first piece of chamber programme music.
> Antonín Dvorák's String Quartets No.9-14, particularly String Quartet No.12 in F major, "American" also No.3 is an exceptionally long quartet (lasting 56 minutes).
> Alexander Borodin's String Quartet No.2 in D major, known for its third movement "Notturno"
> Edvard Grieg's String Quartet in G minor
> Giuseppe Verdi's only String Quartet in E minor
> Jean Sibelius's String Quartet in D minor, Op.56, "Voces intimae"
> Leoš Janácek's String Quartet No.1, "Kreutzer Sonata", inspired by Leo Tolstoy's novel The Kreutzer Sonata.
> Edward Elgar's String Quartet Op.83.
> Béla Bartók's six string quartets
> Alban Berg's String Quartet, Op.3 and Lyric Suite, later adapted for string orchestra.
> Dmitri Shostakovich's 15 string quartets, in particular the String Quartet No.8 in C minor, Op.110.
> Karlheinz Stockhausen's Helikopter-Streichquartett (1992–93), to be played by the four musicians in four helicopters[12]
> Morton Feldman's String Quartet No. 2 (1983), exceptionally long quartet (6 hours, although in some performances the audience is not expected to stay for its entirety).
