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Analysis in Nutrition
Research
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Analysis in Nutrition
Research
Principles of Statistical Methodology
and Interpretation of the Results
Edited by
George Pounis
Nutrition Consultant in the Greek Food Industry, Athens, Greece
Academic Press is an imprint of Elsevier
125 London Wall, London EC2Y 5AS, United Kingdom
525 B Street, Suite 1650, San Diego, CA 92101, United States
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Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or
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Center and the Copyright Licensing Agency, can be found at our website: www.elsevier.com/permissions.
This book and the individual contributions contained in it are protected under copyright by the Publisher (other
than as may be noted herein).
Notices
Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and experience broaden our
understanding, changes in research methods, professional practices, or medical treatment may become
necessary.
Practitioners and researchers must always rely on their own experience and knowledge in evaluating and using
any information, methods, compounds, or experiments described herein. In using such information or methods
they should be mindful of their own safety and the safety of others, including parties for whom they have a
professional responsibility.
To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or editors, assume any
liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or
otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions, or ideas contained in the
material herein.
v
vi CONTENTS
CHAPTER 6 Statistical Analysis of Prospective Health and Nutrition Data ....... 145
George Pounis
6.1 Introduction.............................................................................................................145
6.2 Descriptive Statistics...............................................................................................146
6.3 Measures to Calculate the Occurrence of a Health Outcome................................146
6.3.1 Incidence....................................................................................................... 146
6.3.2 Relative Risk ................................................................................................ 148
6.4 Survival Analysis ....................................................................................................149
6.4.1 Basic Concepts ............................................................................................. 149
6.4.2 KaplaneMeier Analysis ............................................................................... 150
6.4.3 Log-Rank Test .............................................................................................. 152
6.4.4 Cox Regression Analysis ............................................................................. 155
References ...................................................................................................................... 159
CHAPTER 7 Meta-Analysis of Nutrition Studies .................................................. 163
Emmanouil Bouras, Konstantinos K. Tsilidis, George Pounis and
Anna-Bettina Haidich
7.1 Introduction.............................................................................................................164
7.2 Methodology of Meta-Analysis in Nutrition Research..........................................165
7.2.1 Defining the Search Strategy........................................................................ 166
7.2.2 Study Selection Procedure ........................................................................... 169
7.2.3 Quality Assessment ...................................................................................... 169
7.2.4 Data Extraction............................................................................................. 170
7.3 Statistical Methodologies Applied in Meta-Analysis of Nutrition Studies ...........170
7.3.1 Statistical Measures of Effect Included in Meta-Analysis .......................... 171
7.3.2 Choice of Meta-Analytical Method ............................................................. 173
7.3.3 Statistical Heterogeneity .............................................................................. 175
7.3.4 Small-Study Effects...................................................................................... 177
7.3.5 Software for Meta-Analysis ......................................................................... 178
7.4 Presentation and Interpretation of Results .............................................................178
7.4.1 Study Selection............................................................................................. 179
7.4.2 Study Characteristics.................................................................................... 179
7.4.3 Forest Plot..................................................................................................... 179
7.4.4 Assessing Heterogeneity .............................................................................. 182
7.4.5 Risk for Bias................................................................................................. 184
7.4.6 Funnel Plot ................................................................................................... 184
7.5 Limitations and Biases............................................................................................187
7.5.1 Challenges .................................................................................................... 189
References ...................................................................................................................... 191
CONTENTS ix
Claudia Agnoli
Epidemiology and Prevention Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, Milan, Italy
Krasimira Aleksandrova
Nutrition, Immunity and Metabolism Senior Scientist Group, Department of Nutrition and
gerontology, German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke (DIfE), Nuthetal,
Germany
Daria C. Boffito
Department of Chemical Engineering, Polytechnique Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
Emmanouil Bouras
Department of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
Ock K. Chun
Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
Michel de Lorgeril
Laboratoire Cœur et Nutrition, TIMC-IMAG, School of Medicine, University of Grenoble-Alpes,
Grenoble, France
Elaine Dennison
MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit University of Southampton, United Kingdom
Romina di Giuseppe
Institute of Epidemiology, University Kiel, Kiel, Germany
Monica Dinu
Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
Pauline M. Emmett
Centre for Academic Child Health, Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School,
University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
Konstantinos I. Gourgoulianis
Respiratory Medicine Department, University of Thessaly, School of Medicine, Larissa Greece
Anna-Bettina Haidich
Department of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
Lisa T. Jansen
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, United States
Louise R. Jones
Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, United
Kingdom
Stavros A. Kavouras
Hydration Science Lab, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, United States
xv
xvi LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS
Themis Koutsioukis
Respiratory Medicine Department, University of Thessaly, School of Medicine, Larissa Greece
Vittorio Krogh
Epidemiology and Prevention Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, Milan, Italy
Sang Gil Lee
Department of Food Science and Nutrition, Pukyong National University, Busan, Korea
Foteini Malli
Respiratory Medicine Department, University of Thessaly, School of Medicine, Larissa Greece
Technological Institute of Thessaly, Nursing Department, Larissa, Greece
Kate Maslin
MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit University of Southampton, United Kingdom
Dimitra Mastorakou
Leicester, United Kingdom
Melissa Melough
Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
Kate Northstone
Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, United
Kingdom
Gregory S. Patience
Department of Chemical Engineering, Polytechnique Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
Paul A. Patience
Department of Electrical Engineering, Polytechnique Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
George Pounis
Alimos, Athens, Greece
Mikael Rabaeus
Geneva, Switzerland
Junichi Sakaki
Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
Patricia Salen
Laboratoire Cœur et Nutrition, TIMC-IMAG, School of Medicine, University of Grenoble-Alpes,
Grenoble, France
Adam D. Seal
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, United States
Hydration Science Lab, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, United States
Francesco Sofi
Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
Unit of Clinical Nutrition, Careggi University Hospital, Florence, Italy
Don Carlo Gnocchi Foundation, Onlus IRCCS, Florence, Italy
LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS xvii
Hyun-Gyu Suh
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, United States
Hydration Science Lab, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, United States
LynnDee G. Summers
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, United States
Caroline M. Taylor
Centre for Academic Child Health, Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School,
University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
Konstantinos K. Tsilidis
University of Ioannina School of Medicine, Ioannina, Greece
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Preface
Analysis in Nutrition Research: Principles of Statistical Methodology and Interpretation of the Results
describes, in a comprehensive manner, the methodologies of the quantitative analysis of data origi-
nating specifically from nutrition studies. The book summarizes various study designs in nutrition
research, research hypotheses, the proper management of dietary data, and analytical methodologies,
with a specific focus on how to interpret the results of any given study. In addition, it provides a
comprehensive overview of the methodologies used in study design and the management and analysis
of collected data, paying particular attention to all of the available, modern methodologies and
techniques.
Readers will find an overview of the recent challenges and debates in the field of nutrition research
that will define major hypotheses for research in the next 10 years. Nutrition scientists, researchers,
and undergraduate and postgraduate students will benefit from this thorough publication on the topic.
xix
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Acknowledgments
It is a pleasure to thank all of the people who made this title possible.
I am grateful to the contributors who kindly participated in preparing the various chapters of this
book and shared with us their knowledge, experience, and expertise.
I would not have achieved this ambitious goal without the support of Elsevier and I wish to thank
Megan Ball, who trusted me with the editorial role.
I want to extend my sincere gratitude to my colleagues from Elsevier, who supported me in the
various steps of this publication.
My final thoughts go to my family and Eleftheria. I would not have gone so far without their love
and encouragement.
Georgios
xxi
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PART
ANALYSIS IN
NUTRITION
RESEARCH 1
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CHAPTER
DESIGN OF OBSERVATIONAL
NUTRITION STUDIES
1
George Pounis
Alimos, Athens, Greece
CHAPTER OUTLINE
1.1 Introduction to Observational Nutrition Studies...................................................................................3
1.2 Ecological Nutrition Studies..............................................................................................................5
1.2.1 Description ..................................................................................................................5
1.2.2 Challenges...................................................................................................................5
1.2.3 Example of Ecological Study on Diet and Cancer.............................................................6
1.3 Cross-Sectional Nutrition Studies ......................................................................................................6
1.3.1 Description ..................................................................................................................6
1.3.2 Sampling.....................................................................................................................8
1.3.3 Challenges.................................................................................................................10
1.3.4 Example of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey .................................11
1.4 CaseeControl Nutrition Studies .......................................................................................................12
1.4.1 Description ................................................................................................................12
1.4.2 Sampling...................................................................................................................12
1.4.3 Challenges.................................................................................................................14
1.4.4 An Example in the Study of Hodgkin Lymphoma ...........................................................15
1.5 Cohort Nutrition Studies..................................................................................................................15
1.5.1 Description ................................................................................................................15
1.5.2 Sampling...................................................................................................................16
1.5.3 Challenges.................................................................................................................17
1.5.4 Example of the Nurses’ Health Study ...........................................................................18
References ............................................................................................................................................19
Systematic observation along with accurate and systematic measurement has been the basis for the
development of science in various fields from mathematics and physics to sociology and medicine.
Although nutrition science is relatively young compared with others, it has been firmly tied to
observation and the measurement since the mid-1950s, when the first evidence-based conclusions
regarding the association of nutrition and health were determined [1e13].
As part of nutrition science, nutritional epidemiology incorporates valuable information related to
the methodologies and techniques of observation and measurement applied to generate evidence-based
conclusions regarding the interaction between diet and health, among others. A considerable pro-
portion of dietary risk factors for various diseases have been identified and studied through epide-
miological health and nutrition studies.
An observational nutrition study may be defined as the detailed investigation and analysis of in-
formation provided by a retrospective or prospective systematic observation and measurement of a
sample’s dietary factors (exposures) and health characteristics (outcomes), in which the researcher
does not willingly influence the collected information.
Observational nutrition studies have an epidemiological character and aim to generalize conclu-
sions derived from the investigation and analysis of sample data from the reference population [6,14].
They are often named population-based studies. According to the nature of the collected data, they are
divided into retrospective and prospective studies [6,14,15]. Types of retrospective surveys include
ecological, cross-sectional, and caseecontrol studies whereas prospective surveys include follow-up
and longitudinal studies, which are generally labeled cohort studies.
All of these study designs provide valuable descriptive information about adherence to dietary
patterns, the consumption of foods and nutrients, the presence of certain dietary behaviors, and other
dietary characteristics in a population base. In addition, they aim to test hypotheses related to the
association of dietary exposures with health outcomes. Although by themselves these studies are not
enough to prove a cause-and-effect relationship between a dietary factor and a health outcome, as-
sociations observed mainly in cohort surveys assign the potential existence of causality. In these cases,
further investigation through intervention trials and meta-analysis is essential when it is ethically and
technologically feasible.
Evidence-based nutrition science or practice is well-promoted as the preferable and most accurate
methodology to make decisions in all related disciplines; it aims to maintain or improve the health of
individuals, groups, and populations [10]. Observational nutrition studies are a first and important step
in the evidence-based concluding chain of nutrition science.
All of the various types of observational nutrition studies have certain advantages and limitations
that derive from their nature, and which should be considered throughout the stages of the survey (i.e.,
design, implementation, analysis, presentation, and publication of results and conclusions). In addi-
tion, the methodology of the collection, the management and statistical analysis of data, and the
presentation and interpretation of the results vary among the different designs. These issues are
addressed in other chapters of the book (i.e., Chapters 3e8).
The following sections offer an overview of the various types of observational nutrition studies
illustrating their basic concepts and design methodologies, providing survey examples from the
literature.
1.2 ECOLOGICAL NUTRITION STUDIES 5
1.2.2 CHALLENGES
Among the major concerns for the designers of an ecological nutrition study is the identification of
appropriate population-based measures of the dietary characteristics and health status of the pop-
ulations under investigation.
Estimates of the population dietary intake are often retrieved from preexisting data generated by
systematic measures and evaluations performed for other reasons (i.e., economic studies, census).
Sources of dietary information include national and international data about the per capita
6 CHAPTER 1 DESIGN OF OBSERVATIONAL NUTRITION STUDIES
consumption of foods, data from household surveys, and individual survey data from representative
sample populations.
An important consideration for the survey’s investigators is a study of the methodology used for
data collection and management. The use harmonized national and international population-based
dietary data ensures their comparability. This purpose is assisted by using common data collection
and management methodologies.
Another challenge to conducting an ecological study is evaluating the level of accuracy of
population-based dietary data. Biases related to the methodology of data acquisition should be limited.
For instance, frequently, the data for the per capita consumption of food in a country are retrieved by
economic studies for food sales, imports, and exports. Because of their aims and methodology, these
surveys cannot control for the amount of food that is wasted. It may be true that a significant amount of
food that has been sold to consumers was not actually consumed. The percentage of wasted food
among countries with different socioeconomical standings may vary significantly. This may lead to
biased conclusions regarding variations observed in food consumption and the health status of pop-
ulations under investigation.
The second quartet, in D minor (K. 421), takes both from its tonality
and from the nature of its themes a thin veil of melancholy. The
opening theme is poignantly expressive, but the fire of it is often
covered. The characteristic width of its intervals is used throughout
the entire movement, with a strange effect of yearning, now
resigned, now passionately outspoken. The andante, in F major, is
tinged with the same melancholy. The trio of the minuet is one of the
few places where Mozart made use of pizzicato effects. The last
movement is a series of variations on a melancholy little theme cast
in the rhythm of the Siciliana, one of the Italian rhythms already
made use of by Handel and Gluck, among others.
The third quartet, in E-flat major (K. 428), is on the whole reserved
and classical in spirit. The opening theme, given in unison, has a
gentle dignity which marks the whole first movement. The measures
following the second theme are especially smooth and lovely in their
slowly falling harmonies. In the second movement, andante con
moto, there is a constant shifting of harmonies, and a somewhat
restless interchange of parts among the instruments. The trio of the
minuet, in C minor, is subtly woven over a drone bass. The final
movement is a lively rondo.
The fourth, in B-flat major (K. 458), is, in the first movement, very like
Haydn, light-hearted and wholly gay. The following minuet, adagio,
and rondo need hardly be specially mentioned. The A major quartet
(K. 464), the next in the series, is in a similar vein. The slow
movement, again the third in the cycle, is in the form of variations;
and the last is full of imitations and other contrapuntal devices.
The last of these quartets, in C major (K. 465), is the most profound
and the most impassioned. The boldness of Mozart’s imagination in
harmonies is in most of his work likely to fail to impress the modern
ear. One hears but half-consciously the subtlety of his modulations.
But here and there in his work the daring of the innovator still has
power to claim our attention; as in the andante of the last pianoforte
sonata in F major (K. 533), and still more in the introduction of this
quartet. The sharp harmonies of the first few measures roused
hostility; and the discussion as to their grammatical propriety was
continued for more than half a century after Mozart’s death.
There remain three more quartets to mention. These were written for
Frederick William II of Prussia, at whose court Mozart had been a
frequent attendant during the early spring of 1789. The first quartet
was completed in Vienna, in June, 1789. The other two were written
about a year later. In Köchel’s index the three are Nos. 575, in D
major, 589, in B-flat major, and 590, in F major.
All are very plainly written with a king in mind who played the
violoncello. In most of the movements the 'cello is given a very
prominent part, frequently playing in unusually high registers as in
the announcement of the second theme in the first movement of the
first of these quartets; in the trio and the finale as well. In many
places the viola plays the bass part, leaving the 'cellist free to be
soloist, as in the opening measures of the Larghetto in the second
sonata. Thus these quartets, fine and free in style as they are, are
not the fullest expression of Mozart’s genius, as the series of six
dedicated to Haydn may be taken to be.
With the quartets may be mentioned the four great quintets for
strings, written, two in the spring of 1787, one in December, 1790,
and one in April, 1791. Of the combination of five string parts Haydn
made little use. Boccherini, however, had written at least one
hundred and twenty-five quintets. He was himself a 'cellist and, as
might be expected, the added instrument in his quintets was a 'cello.
Mozart added another viola to the group. Though this added no new
strand of color to the whole, it rather complicated the problems
offered by the quartet. As Otto Jahn has carefully explained, with the
volume of sound thus thickened, there came a need for even more
active movement of the separate parts. Since the additional part was
among the middle voices, the outer voices must be spread as far
apart as possible so as to allow sufficient freedom of movement to
the inner. The extra viola might be treated as a bass part to the first
and second violins, or as the upper part above the other viola and
the 'cello. Mozart made use of this possibility of contrast nowhere
more clearly than in the opening pages of the quintet in G minor.
The four quintets are respectively in C major (K. 515), G minor (K.
516), D major (K. 593), and E-flat major (K. 614). Of these that in G
minor is clearly the most remarkable; and it is indeed conspicuous
above almost all his instrumental music, for the passionate intensity
of the moods which it voices. Needless to say it still holds its place
as one of the supreme master-works in chamber music. More than a
similarity of key unites it to the symphony in G minor. The themes in
both works seem much alike, and both are equally broad in form and
full of harmonic color.
FOOTNOTES:
[62] L. Piquot: Notice sur la vie et les ouvrages de Luigi Boccherini; Paris, 1851.
[63] These are Nos. 1-18, inclusive, in Pohl’s index. The opus numbers by which
Haydn’s quartets are usually designated are taken from the thematic index
prefixed to the complete Trautwein Edition of 1844. These first quartets are: Opus
1, Nos. 1-6; opus 2, Nos. 1-6; and opus 3, Nos. 1-6.
[68] Adagio, allegro, minuetto. The finale rondo was added some years later. Cf.
‘W. A. Mozart,’ by de Wyzewa and de Saint-Foix: Paris, 1912.
[69] Cf. Wyzewa and Saint-Foix: op cit. Gassmann was born in Bohemia in 1723
and died in Vienna in 1774. A great many of his works in manuscript are in the
libraries at Milan. He had been appointed to a place in Vienna in 1762, and was
hardly likely, therefore, to be in Milan when Mozart was; but he had lived at one
time in Milan and came back there occasionally from Vienna to superintend
performances of his operas.
CHAPTER XVI
THE STRING QUARTET: BEETHOVEN
Beethoven’s approach to the string quartet; incentives; the six
quartets opus 18—The Rasumowsky quartets; opera 74 and 95—
The great development period; the later quartets, op. 127 et seq.:
The E-flat major (op. 127)—The A minor (op. 132); the B-flat
major (op. 130); the C-sharp minor (op. 131); the F major (op.
135).
I
Beethoven’s six quartets, opus 18, were first published in 1800. He
had already experimented in other forms of chamber music, not only
for strings alone. The sextet for two clarinets, two bassoons, and two
horns; the quintet, opus 16, for piano, oboe, clarinet, horn, and
bassoon; the string quintet, opus 4; three trios for violin, viola, and
violoncello; the trio, opus 11, for piano, clarinet, and violoncello; and
sonatas for violin and piano, and violoncello and piano, had already
been written. The pianoforte sonatas up to that in B-flat, opus 22,
and the first symphony had likewise been completed. Beethoven
thus turned to the composition of string quartets after an experience
with almost all other branches of music had made him master of the
art of composition.
Apart from any inner development in the man which waited thus long
before attempting expression in that form in which the very last and
in some ways the most remarkable of his thoughts were to find
utterance, one or two external circumstances probably turned his
attention to the string quartet. One was undoubtedly the morning
musicales at the house of his friend and patron, Prince Lichnowsky,
where such music was especially in demand, and where Beethoven
must constantly have heard the quartets of Haydn and Mozart.[70]
Another was his personal acquaintance with Emanuel Aloys Förster,
[71] a composer of quartets for whom Beethoven had a high regard.
These first quartets appeared in two groups of three. They are not
arranged in the order of their composition. For example, that in D
major, the third in the first set, is probably the oldest of the six. But
the series presents little evidence of development within its limits,
and there is hardly reason to attach serious importance to the order
in which the various quartets were created. Besides, with the
exception of the quartet in C minor, No. 4, the entire series is
expressive of much the same mood and intention. If one quartet is at
all distinguished from the others, it is only by a few minor details,
usually of biographical or otherwise extrinsic significance. The
technique is that of Haydn and Mozart, lacking, perhaps, the assured
grace of the earlier masters; the character, one of cheerfulness, with
only here and there a flash of the emotional imperiousness with
which Beethoven took hold of music.
II
The year after the publication of these first quartets appeared the
quintet for strings, in C major, opus 29. This is the only original string
quintet of Beethoven’s, except the fugue written for a similar group of
instruments in 1817, probably as a study. The quintet, opus 4, is a
rearrangement of the octet for wind instruments, written in 1792,
before coming to Vienna. The quintet, opus 104, is an arrangement
of the trio in C minor, opus 1, which Beethoven made in 1817,
following an anonymous request, and which he regarded
humorously.
In 1808 were printed the three great quartets opus 59, dedicated to
Count (later Prince) Rasumowsky. Beethoven’s earlier patron, Prince
Lichnowsky, had left Vienna, and the famous quartet under the
leadership of Schuppanzigh, which had played such a part in his
Friday morning musicales, was now engaged by Rasumowsky,
Russian Ambassador to the court at Vienna. Rasumowsky
commissioned Beethoven to write three quartets in which there was
to be some use of Russian melodies.
The Russian quartets are regular in structure, but they are as broad
as symphonies by comparison with opus 18. The style is bold,
though the details are carefully finished, and the instruments are
treated polyphonically, each being as prominent and as important as
the others. This in particular marks an advance over the earlier
works in the same form. There is in them, moreover, an emotional
vigor, which, expressed in broad sweeps and striking, often strident,
harmonies, worked in the opinion of many contemporaries a
barbarous distortion of the hitherto essentially delicate form. To
interpret them is but to repeat what has been already made familiar
by the sonatas of the period, by the Eroica, and by Fidelio. It is the
same Beethoven who speaks here with no less vigor, though with
necessarily finer point.
The second quartet of the series is less forceful, and far more
sensitive and complicated. The key is E minor. Two incisive, staccato
chords, tonic and dominant, open the movement. One remembers
the opening of the Eroica. There follows a full measure of silence
and then the melodic kernel of the first movement, pianissimo in
unison—a rising figure upon the tonic triad (which will again recall for
an instant the Eroica) and a hushed falling back upon the dominant
seventh. Again the full measure of silence, and again the rising and
falling, questioning, motive, this time in F major. After an agitated
transitional passage, the first violin gives out the second theme, a
singing melody in G major. But the threefold first theme—the incisive
chords, the measure of silence, and the questioning figure—carry
the burden of the work, one of mystery to which the second theme is
evidently stranger. At the beginning of the middle section, and again
at the beginning of the long coda, the chords and the breathless
silences assume a threatening character, now hushed, then
suddenly angry, to which the figure reluctantly responds with its
unanswered question.
The last of this series of quartets—in C major—is for the most part
wholly outspoken. There is little obscurity in meaning, none in form.
At the basis of the slow introduction lies a series of falling half-tones,
given to the 'cello. The first allegro is almost martial in character. The
second movement—andante con moto quasi allegretto, in A minor—
is in the nature of a Romanza; and the frequent pizzicato of the 'cello
suggests the lutenist of days long gone by. There follows a Minuet
instead of a Scherzo; and at the end there is a vigorous fugue.
Between these three quartets and the final series beginning with
opus 127, stand two isolated quartets: opus 74, in E-flat major, and
opus 95, in F minor. Neither indicates a considerable change in
Beethoven’s method, or in his attitude towards his art. The former,
composed in 1809 and dedicated to Prince Lobkowitz, is in the spirit
of the last of the Rasumowsky quartets; that is, outspoken, vigorous,
and clear. The relatively long, slow introduction alone hints at a tragic
seriousness; but it serves rather to show from what the composer
had freed himself, than to expose the riddle of the piece. The first
theme of the first movement is stalwart and well-built; the second, of
rather conventional character, chiefly made up of whirring scale
groups. In the development section there are many measures of
arpeggio figures, at first pizzicato, later growing into arco; by reason
of which the quartet has been given the name of Harfenquartett
(Harp-quartet). In connection with this passage Dr. Riemann has
remarked that all such experiments in sound effects [such as
pizzicato, harmonics and playing on special strings] serve only to
reveal the actual lack of different tone-colors in the quartet; and,
indeed, distract the attention from the ‘drawing’ [i.e., the pure lines of
the various parts] which is peculiarly the affair of the quartet.
The movement is not completed, but goes without pause into the
next, a strangely built scherzo, allegro assai vivace, ma serioso. The
vivace evidently applies to the main body of the movement, which is
in a constantly active, dotted rhythm. The serioso is explained by the
part of the movement in G-flat major, which one may regard as the
trio. This is merely a chorale melody, first given by the second violin.
The lower instruments follow the melody with note-for-note
harmonies; the first violin adds to each note of the melody an
unvarying formula of ornamentation. All this is done first in the key of
G-flat major, then in D major. The opening section is then repeated,
and after it comes the chorale melody, a little differently scored; and
a coda, piu allegro, brings the movement to an end.
The last movement is preceded by a few introductory measures,
which are in character very like the Lebewohl motive in the sonata,
opus 81. And the progression from the introduction into the allegro
agitato is not unlike the beginning of the last movement of the same
sonata. The allegro itself is most obviously in hunting-song style,
suggesting in the first melody Mendelssohn, in parts of the
accompaniment the horns at the beginning of the second act of
Tristan und Isolda. The second theme is a horn-call. Just before the
end the galloping huntsmen pass far off into the distance, their horns
sound fainter and fainter, finally cease. Then there is a mad coda, in
alla breve time.
III
There follows between this quartet and the quartet, opus 127, a
period of fourteen years, in which time Beethoven composed the
seventh, eighth, and ninth symphonies, the last pianoforte sonatas,
the Liederkreis, and the Mass in D. He turned to the quartet for the
last expression in music of what life had finally come to mean to him,
stone-deaf, miserable in health, weary and unhappy. There is not
one of the last five quartets which does not proclaim the ultimate
victory of his soul over every evil force that had beset his earthly
path.
Of the five last quartets the first and last are formally the most clear;
the intermediate three, especially those in A minor and C-sharp
minor, are perhaps the most intricate and difficult music to follow and
to comprehend that has been written. All but the last are very long,
and thus tax the powers of attention of the average listener often
beyond endurance. Their full significance is discerned only by those
who not only have made themselves intimately familiar with every
note and line of them, but who have penetrated deep into the most
secret mysteries of the whole art of music.
The first variation opens with the melody for violoncello, only slightly
altered from its original form. The violins add a counterpoint in
dialogue. This variation comes to a full stop. The second brings a
change in time signature (C, andante con moto). The theme, now
highly animated, is divided between the first and second violins. In
the fourth variation (E major, 2/2, adagio molto espressivo) only the
general outline of the theme is recognizable, cut down and much
compressed. The fifth variation brings back the original tempo and
the original key. The violoncello has the theme, only slightly varied in
rhythm, and the first violin a well-defined counter-melody. The sixth
and last variation (in this movement) grows strangely out of the fifth,
in D-flat major, sotto voce, leads to C-sharp minor, and thence to A-
flat major. There is a short epilogue.
The main themes of the Scherzo and Trio which follow are so closely
akin to the theme of the adagio, that the movements may be taken
as further variations. The main body of the Scherzo is in that dotted
rhythm of which Beethoven made frequent use in most of his last
works; and is fairly regular in structure, except for the intrusion, at
the end of the second part, of measures in 2/4 time, in unison, which
may be taken as suggestions of still another fragmentary variation of
the adagio theme. The Trio is a presto in E-flat minor.
The Finale is entirely in a vigorous, jovial and even homely vein. The
themes are all clear-cut and regular; the spirit almost boisterous,
suggesting parts of the ‘Academic Festival Overture’ or the
Passacaglia from the fourth symphony of Brahms.
III
This E-flat major quartet was completed at the latest in January,
1825. Work on the following three quartets—in A minor, B-flat major,
and C-sharp minor—began at once, but was interrupted by serious
illness. About the sixth of May Beethoven moved to Gutenbrunn,
near Baden; and here took up the work again. The A minor was
completed not later than August, the B-flat in September or October,
the C-sharp minor some months later, after his return to Vienna.
The three quartets are closely related. In the first place all show a
tendency on the part of Beethoven to depart from the regular four-
movement type. There are five movements in the A minor, six in the
B-flat major, seven in the C-sharp minor; though in the last, two of
the movements are hardly more than introductory in character. The
Danza Tedesca in G major in opus 130, was written originally in A
major and intended for the A minor quartet. Finally the chromatic
motive, clearly stated in the introduction to the A minor quartet, and
lying at the basis of the whole first movement, may be traced in the
fugue theme in opus 130, and in the opening fugal movement of
opus 131.