The Heritage series continues with a program filled with sunshine, joy, and optimism. Haydn, not just the Grandfather of the Symphony, reigns as the Father of the String Quartet. His Op. 20 quartets, affectionately nicknamed his "Sun Quartets" after the art on an early edition. Fighting depression and loneliness, Haydn responds with a series of quartets that would transform the string quartet from entertainment into a genre that could define entire generations. No. 2 begins with the loveliest of cello solos, and closes with "a game of tag, joyful and unleashed." (Mark Steinberg).
Beethoven carries this on, his beloved "Harp" Quartet a work that calls to mind the warmth and brightness of the sun as much as his dear mentor Haydn. An octogenarian, Saint-Saëns had been disregarded and potentially discarded as an aged traditionalist. Despite that, at eighty-four, he took on his second attempt at the string quartet in 1919. What did we get? A modern, masterful contribution to the genre, stuffed to the brim with playfulness, surprises, and a joie de vivre that directly belies the constant changes of the early 20th century.