{"id":2643,"date":"2023-10-16T10:11:58","date_gmt":"2023-10-16T08:11:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.popularbeethoven.com\/?p=2643"},"modified":"2023-10-17T11:19:41","modified_gmt":"2023-10-17T09:19:41","slug":"beethoven-the-string-quartets-a-book-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.popularbeethoven.com\/beethoven-the-string-quartets-a-book-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Beethoven: The String Quartets – a book review"},"content":{"rendered":"

David Vernon: Beethoven: The String Quartets<\/strong><\/p>\n

As a long time Churchill fan I always find wisdom and encouragement in his sayings. One can easily discover answers in these compact one liners to almost any situation in life. No wonder, when reading David Vernon\u2019s new book, a quote came to me: I like a man who grins when he fights.<\/em><\/p>\n

I was thinking, yes, I like a man who smiles when he writes a book about Beethoven! This is my foremost impression about this work, the dedication and love for the subject, for the composer!<\/p>\n

Dr. David Vernon is an interesting person, who studied at Oxford University, before spending time teaching language and literature in China and Japan. Upon his return to Europe, he embarked on his doctoral journey, focusing on Shakespeare’s tragicomedies at Freie Universit\u00e4t, Berlin. Subsequently, he extended his passion for English literature in London, where he dedicated numerous years to teaching in the field. Now he lives in Edinburgh.<\/p>\n

He is not new to writing books. With publications on Shakespeare, Nabokov and Mahler he now turned to the greatest of all: Beethoven. In his new book he covers the difficult subject of Beethoven\u2019s string quartets \u2013 the genre in which he perhaps made his most unique contribution to music.<\/p>\n

The writer works in chronological order in his more than 400 page-long book. He follows the usual division of Beethoven\u2019s quartets into early, middle and late compositions. Before getting to the main subject, he gives an enjoyable introduction to the theme of the book, even a short, but well-balanced biography of Beethoven.<\/p>\n

Each quartet receives its own chapter and each starts with a short journey in time to reveal the historical and cultural background of the piece. The music itself is analyzed movement by movement, but these are not technical descriptions with musical jargon. Like a guide, rather, these are insightful narrations, often very funny and always properly connecting to the music.<\/p>\n

Popular Beethoven magazine is dedicated to promote Beethoven and his music in a way that is universally comprehensible by people of different backgrounds and without education in music. Dr. David Vernon\u2019s book, Beethoven: The String Quartets<\/em>, is similarly accessible and that is why it is highly recommended<\/strong>, even mandatory for Beethoven aficionados.<\/p>\n

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(Disclosure: Popular Beethoven Magazine is an Amazon Associate and earns from qualifying purchases. This means, if you follow the links and purchase a product or service, our magazine will receive a small percentage as commission. This will not affect your price! These commissions help to operate the magazine, this way your purchase also supports our work. Thank you!)<\/i><\/p>\n

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David Vernon: Beethoven: The String Quartets As a long time Churchill fan I always find wisdom and encouragement in his sayings. One can easily discover answers in these compact one liners to almost any situation in life. No wonder, when reading David Vernon\u2019s new book, a quote came to me: I like a man who grins when he fights. I … <\/p>\n

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