String quartet String quartet A string quartet is a musical ensemble consisting of four string players – two violin players, a viola player and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group. The string quartet is one of the most prominent chamber ensembles in classical music, with most major composers, from the mid 18th century onwards, writing string quartets. The string quartet was developed into its current form by the Austrian composer Joseph Haydn, with his works in the 1750s establishing the genre. Ever since Haydn's day the string quartet has been considered a prestigious form
String Quartet in D major (Britten) "it sounds more or less as I intended it". In 1974, the composer revised it for publication, at the urging of Donald Mitchell. The revisions seem to have been fairly small. The quartet is in three movements: A complete performance takes about 19 minutes. Musicologist Peter Evans considered it an immediate background to, and to strongly foreshadow, Britten's "Sinfonietta", which was published in 1932 as his Op. 1. String Quartet in D major (Britten) String Quartet in D major (it has neither an official number nor an opus number) by English composer Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) was written in 1931. He