Description
Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951)Concerto for String Quartet and Orchestra inB flat, after the Concerto Grosso Op. 6, No. 7by George Frideric Handel, freely transcribed anddeveloped by Arnold SchoenbergWhereas the playing time of Handel's concerto forstrings and continuo is fourteen minutes, andSchoenberg's orchestral elaboration of it 22 minutes, thework should be counted among the latter's compositionsand not simply as one of his orchestrations (Brahms,Bach). He was not an unqualified admirer of Handel,and indeed became livid if the name was mentioned inthe same breath as Bach. Apropos the Monn CelloConcerto recomposed for Pablo Casals, Schoenbergwrote:"I was mainly intent on removing the defects ofthe Handelian style. Just as Mozart did withHandel's Messiah, I have had to get rid of wholehandfuls of rosalias and sequences, replacing themwith real substance. I also did my best to deal withthe other main defect of the Handelian style,which is that the theme is always best when it firstappears and grows steadily more insignificant andtrivial in the course of the piece."""