Known professionally as a medical doctor and Professor of Chemistry, Alexander Borodin modestly called himself a "Sunday composer"—but thank goodness for those Sundays; Though he made significant contributions to the afore-mentioned fields, it is the marvelous music we now remember. On Monday afternoon's program, Foley will feature one of the most beloved works of Borodin—and most beloved in the string quartet repertoire—the String Quartet No. 2 in D major, which the composer dedicated to his wife Ekaterina Protopova and, according to some sources was premiered on January 26, 1882.
Both the dedication of the work and its timing have lead scholars to believe that the quartet was a 20th anniversary gift and that it has a program evoking the couple's first meeting in Heidelberg. This would certainly be supported by the music as well—with special reference to the third of the fourth movements, the celebrated "Notturno," which is among the most tender and beautiful music Borodin—or anyone else for that matter—would ever write.
This afternoon on Classical Music with Foley Schuler, we'll hear the String Quartet No. 2—as well as a suite drawn by conductor Eric Kunzel from the hit Broadway show, Kismet, based on Borodin's music, including several significant borrowings from this most famous of his chamber music works, with the theme from the Quartet’s lively Scherzo serving as the basis for “Baubles, Bangles, and Beads” and the lyrical, afore-mentioned Nocturne for “And This Is My Beloved.”
You can hear Foley Schuler's musical selections—and stories behind the music—every weekday afternoon from 1 until 4 on Blue Lake Public Radio.
