Mendelssohn's A minor quartet reveals the then eighteen-year-old to have already been a master of his profession. Not content with dreaming up charming, inimitable themes and fitting them out perfectly in Classical attire, his role models were not Haydn and Mozart, but late Beethoven. The quartet is framed by a 'Leitmotiv' - the quote 'Ist es wahr?' (Is it true?) from a previously composed love song (Op. 9/1).
Music Web: recommended.