String Quartet No. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 131

The quartet has seven movements played without a break. The first is a slow, soft fugue, where the same tune enters one voice at a time, and it feels like a long, quiet sigh. The second is a lighter, flowing dance, and the third is a very short bridge. The fourth is the heart of the piece: a long, tender melody followed by changing variations. The fifth is a fast, playful scherzo that includes sudden surprises. The sixth is a brief, grave song. The finale is a stormy, driving movement that ends with firm chords. This version is arranged for string orchestra, so each part is played by a section.

Beethoven wrote this quartet in 1825 and 1826, at the end of his life, when he was deaf. It was published in 1827 and dedicated to Baron Joseph von Stutterheim. A story says the composer Franz Schubert asked to hear it shortly before he died in 1828. Later composers and critics have treated it as one of the high points of the string quartet. Arrangements for string orchestra let large ensembles play it.