Nate Hochstetler

February 22, 2015

MUS 121-001
The Brentano String Quartet
In String Quartet No. 3, by Bela Bartok, many variances of
volume occurred during the course of the piece. For example, the piece
started off very calm with each member of the string quartet entering
in one by one. The notes played by each of the instruments seemed to
not harmonize. However, as the intro went on, they seemed to work
well in the context of the piece. Throughout the rest of the piece, the
volume would fluctuate from quiet to loud, sometimes very abruptly.
The tempo also followed a similar pattern. It would have a slower
tempo then suddenly pick up into a very fast tempo. The String
Quartet in B-flat major, Op. 67, had a much different feel then the
ominous-sounding piece that preceded it. The final piece had a much
more normal volume in general with a much more modest tempo; it did
not fluctuate nearly as much as the piece before.
My favorite piece by far was the second one. The very strange,
seemingly off-key notes that were put together gave a very
uncomfortable feel to the piece. Also, in combination with
uncomfortable feel, the rapid pick up of tempo and volume gave it a
surprising dynamic, as if the listener doesnt know what is coming
next. Throughout the piece I could not help but relate to a horror

movie. The final piece, however, was very different. It had a much
lighter feel to it with it due to notes that actually seemed to go well
together. Throughout this piece, I felt like it was summer, which is
something I think Brahms was going for when composing the piece.