Felix Mendelssohn

Felix Mendelssohn

Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...

 wrote six numbered string quartet

String quartet

A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...

s which were published during his lifetime:

• String Quartet No. 1 in E flat major, Op. 12
  String Quartet No. 1 (Mendelssohn)
  The String Quartet No. 1 in E flat major, Op. 12, was composed by Felix Mendelssohn in 1829, completed in London on September 14th and possibly dedicated to Betty Pistor, a neighbor and the daughter of a Berlin astronomer.- Movements :...
  
   composed in 1829
• String Quartet No. 2 in A minor, Op. 13
  String Quartet No. 2 (Mendelssohn)
  The String Quartet No. 2 in A minor, Op. 13, was composed by Felix Mendelssohn in 1827. Written when he was 18 years old, it was, despite its official number, Mendelssohn's first string quartet...
  
   composed in 1827
• String Quartet No. 3 in D major, Op. 44, No. 1
  String Quartet No. 3 (Mendelssohn)
  The String Quartet No. 3 in D major, Op. 44, No. 1, was composed by Felix Mendelssohn in 1838. The piece is part of the Op. 44 set of 3 string quartets that Mendelssohn dedicated to the Crown Prince of Sweden.- Movements :...
  
   composed in 1838
• String Quartet No. 4 in E minor, Op. 44, No. 2
  String Quartet No. 4 (Mendelssohn)
  The String Quartet No. 4 in E minor, Op. 44, No. 2, was composed by Felix Mendelssohn in 1837. The piece is part of the Op. 44 set of 3 string quartets that Mendelssohn dedicated to the Crown Prince of Sweden.- Movements :...
  
   composed in 1837
• String Quartet No. 5 in E flat major, Op. 44, No. 3
  String Quartet No. 5 (Mendelssohn)
  The String Quartet No. 5 in E flat major, Op. 44, No. 3, was composed by Felix Mendelssohn in 1838. The piece is part of the Op. 44 set of 3 string quartets that Mendelssohn dedicated to the Crown Prince of Sweden.- Movements :...
  
   composed in 1838
• String Quartet No. 6 in F minor, Op. 80
  String Quartet No. 6 (Mendelssohn)
  The String Quartet No. 6 in F minor, Op. 80, was composed by Felix Mendelssohn in 1847 and is essentially his last major composition...
  
   composed in 1847

Mendelssohn also wrote another quartet in E flat major

String Quartet in E flat major (1823) (Mendelssohn)

The String Quartet in E flat major is an early work composed by Felix Mendelssohn in 1823 but not published until 1879. The quartet was not assigned an opus number and is not numbered.- Movements :...

 at the age of 14, just after he had composed his 13 string symphonies

String symphonies (Mendelssohn)

Felix Mendelssohn wrote 12 string symphonies between the years of 1821 and 1823, aged between 12 and 14. For his mature symphonies, see here.-Structure:...

. However, the quartet was never published in his lifetime and so was never assigned an opus number

Opus number

An Opus number , pl. opera and opuses, abbreviated, sing. Op. and pl. Opp. refers to a number generally assigned by composers to an individual composition or set of compositions on publication, to help identify their works...

.

Mendelssohn's first two numbered quartets were published out of order, whilst his next three quartets were published together as Op. 44 and were all dedicated to Crown Prince Gustavus of Sweden.

Mendelssohn's final string quartet was composed after the death of his sister, which was a devastating blow to Mendelssohn. The quartet was also his last major work, as he died only two months after its completion. The piece was published shortly before his death along with a set of four pieces for string quartet

Four Pieces for String Quartet (Mendelssohn)

Felix Mendelssohn composed four pieces for string quartet in the last few years of his life from 1843 to 1847, which were published together shortly before his death as Op. 81:# Andante in E major# Scherzo in A minor# Capriccio in E minor...

also composed in his final years.