The Biography of a String Quartet: Mozart's String Quartet in D Minor, K.421

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's String Quartet K. 421 in D minor remains one of his most celebrated quartets. K. 421 is the second work in a set of six quartets dedicated to Mozart's colleague and mentor, Joseph Haydn, and is the only `Haydn' Quartet in a minor key. An overview of the historical background of K. 421, the significance of D minor in Mozart's compositions, as well as the compositional relationship between Mozart and Haydn situates this work amongst Mozart's other string quartet compositions and provides context for the analysis of different editions. An outline of the historical practices and roles of editors, as well as a detailed analysis and comparison of different editions against the autograph manuscript and the first edition published by Artaria in 1785 examines the numerous discrepancies between each of the different publications of K. 421. Using the information acquired from the comparative study of selected historical editions, some possibilities for future editions of K. 421 are discussed. When undertaking the study of a new quartet, performers can learn a great deal from listening to recordings. In addition to this analysis, an outline of the evolution of string quartet performance practices is provided. The individual conclusions formed from studying the historical background, different publications and selected recordings of a specific composition can be extended beyond this quartet and applied by performers to any work they choose to undertake.D.M.A