Hartmut Schick: Hat Franz Xaver Richter das Streichquartett erfunden?

Überlegungen zum 300. Geburtstag des Komponisten, samt einer Hypothese zu Boccherini*

It is still unclear when the string quartets of Franz Xaver Richter, which first appeared in print in 1768 and were then edited by Riemann in 1914, were composed and how they should be evaluated with respect to the history of the genre. This study asserts that the six works were most probably written no later than 1756. Aside from a controversially interpreted report by Dittersdorf, stylistic peculiarities, such as the close relation of the fast movements to the trio sonata, lead to this conclusion. In addition, the musical texture with its concertante style in all parts exhibits remarkably “modern” traits that anticipate later developments of the genre. Analysis of the musical texture as well as proof of Luigi Boccherini’s visit to the Mannheim Court in 1761 lead to the thesis that Boccherini’s first opus of quartets from that same year were presumably stimulated by the encounter with Richter’s quartets in Mannheim. With this in mind, it appears that Richter should be considered the inventor of the string quartet—the quartet with a genuine cello part—and as a composer who definitively inspired the development of the genre.

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