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The Cambridge Companion to the String Quartet.

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The Cambridge Companion to the String Quartet. Edited by Robin Stowell. (Cambridge Companions to Music.) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. [xiv, 373 p. ISBN 0-521-80194-X $75 (hbk.); ISBN 0-521-00042-4 $27 (pbk.)] Illustrations, music examples, bibliography, index.

A volume on the string quartet is the latest contribution to the Cambridge Companion series devoted to topics. Both scholars and performers have contributed to provide a wide range of perspectives on this subject. The fifteen chapters are divided into four main areas: the changing social role of the string quartet and organological developments; a history of the most celebrated ensembles; string quartet performance practices--historical and modern; and repertoire, including discussion of modern mixed ensembles involving the string quartet. Given the book's aim at broad coverage within a concise format, comprehensive referencing to the relevant literature is essential. Unfortunately there are several important omissions in this area, some of which are below.

Perhaps the most valuable parts of this volume are the chapters that deal with the string quartet from angles that have not been covered in-depth elsewhere. In this respect Christina Bashford's "The string quartet and society" is exemplary. Bashford charts a broad shift over the genre's history from active participation to listening, giving due attention to the counterpoint between these two related reception positions. The chapter serves well as an introduction to the book, since the...

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