String Quartets Vol. 4 Op. 20 Nos 1-6 - Joseph Haydn - Viola|Cello|Violin G. Henle Verlag String Quartet Parts

The preface by Christin Heitmann provides illuminating background information. Haydn did not assign the nickname “Sun Quartets”: it alludes to an edition of the time, in which the title page was decorated with a rising sun. The Quartets op. 20 are the last series in a group of earlier string quartets, but are clearly ahead of their time. The demanding fugues which close three of the six quartets are a particular structural feature. The study edition HN 9208 complements the parts of the String Quartets op. 20.