I enjoyed this piece for a few reasons. While there did seem to be a lot of dissonance in the first 2 movements I enjoyed their upbeat tones. The way in which the 4 violins played off of each other created very pleasant sounds. I also enjoyed Movement 3 in the way that it really slowed down in timing. It evoked a very different emotional response than Movements 1 and 2, at least for myself. If the entire piece is a conversation among four reasonable people as Goethe wrote then Movement 3 would be a conversation based around a very somber topic. I almost visualized it as if 4 people were sitting around discussing a fond memory. There were bright points as if there were happy memories but also sad moments as if the individuals were sad to see a time had passed.

By the end of Movement 3 I was wondering why this piece had been titled “The Joke”. I thought it was a very pleasant piece all together. It wasn’t until late in Movement 4 that I realized where the name came from. After this Movement brings the composition back up to an upbeat timing the music begins to play tricks on the audience. The movement is going along at this fast pace when right around 2:15 the piece begins to flutter as if it is ending. The track picks back up, a bit more is played slowly, and the piece is broken up with a few short moments of silence. This leaves the audience unable to figure out when the piece has ended. I can imagine being at a performance of this composition, unable to determine when I should clap for the musicians. Then, very suddenly the piece actually ends capping of the composition with what I’m sure evoked some laughter among the audience as they fumbled to applaud at the appropriate time.