Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)

Allegro
Andante o piu tosto allegretto
Menuetto: Allegro ma non troppo
Vivace assai

String Quartet in C Major, Opus 76 No.3 (Emperor)
Allegro
Poco adagio: cantabile
Menuetto: Allegro
Finale: Presto

String Quartet in B Flat Major, Opus 76 No.4 (Sunrise)
Allegro con spirito
Adagio
Menuetto: Allegro
Finale: Allegro ma non troppo

Joseph Haydn was as prolific as any eighteenth century composer, his fecundity a matter, in good part, of the nature of his employment and the length of his life. Born in 1732 in the village of Rohrau, the son of a wheelwright, he was recruited to the choir of St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna at the age of eight, later earning a living as best he could as a musician in the capital and making useful acquaintances through his association with Metastasio, the Court Poet, and the composer Nicola Porpora.