String Quartet No. 1 (Revueltas)

The quartet is in two movements: The first movement is regarded by one analyst as not following any conventional formal scheme, consisting instead of a series of contrasting episodes in different tempos and frequently changing meters that is similar to the Italian canzonas of the late-sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. According to another view, it is in a ternary, ABA form, which conflicts with the expected sonata-allegro form of the traditional string quartet. The outer sections are fast, rhythmically irregular, loud, and aggressive, while the middle section contrasts with a slower tempo (Lento), regular rhythms, soft dynamics, and a lyrical, tender mood. The first section falls into four subsections (Allegro energico, Poco meno mosso – cantabile, Tempo I, and Meno mosso), each marked at the end by sustained chords, grand pauses, or both. The fourth subsection is a modified repetition of the second. The chromatic harmonies of the slow, B section are reminiscent of the slow passages in the String Quartet and Lyric Suite of Alban Berg. The concluding Allegro is a nearly literal repetition of just the third subsection from the first part of the movement. The second movement is in the same fast-slow-fast ternary pattern as the first, but the two A sections are identical and divided into just two subsections. The slow middle section, unlike its counterpart in the first movement, is characterised by ostinato patterns and an eerie mood. Its metrical regularity contrasts sharply with the erratic rhythms of the outer, A sections. ==Recordings==