The exclusive image of the string quartet, established relatively early in its history and lasting up to the present day, has determined that only a narrow range of works from the eighteenth century remains in general circulation. There is a comparative lack of editions, recordings and above all live performances of quartets by any composers other than Haydn and Mozart. This might seem to mirror the current representation of later eighteenth-century music altogether, confined like that of no other period to a tiny number of ‘Classical’ figures. Nevertheless, one senses a greater openness to unfamiliar repertory with other genres. It seems to have been assumed that it is the quartet that most readily finds out the lesser figures, that sorts the great from the good. The collective image of these lesser figures tends not to accord them much dignity: they are lightweights, and any attempted revival of their music may well prompt a bemused reaction.

This reflects an attitude towards the whole musical language of the time: that it is inherently undemanding, that only the best can transcend its expressive and technical blandness. This reflects (and misinterprets) the marked preoccupation with medium and low styles in this language, the aesthetic preference for accessibility, to the relative exclusion of a high style that was by definition associated with a less accessible past. The heart of the matter concerns technical rather more than expressive tone: just what constitutes good technique, how does it relate to genre and how conspicuously ought it to be displayed for the listener? Once more the question arises of how distinct a role the quartet plays in such a larger reception history.