Wossamotta U
Well-Known Member
Probably Op. 76, but why choosing when one has been given so much great music?
I agree—Haydn composed 68 string quartets over a forty-year period, and for me, part of the joy of them as a body of work (as with Haydn’s symphonies) is their variety, and the scope of Haydn’s musical evolution.
For someone new to Haydn’s quartets, I might especially recommend the Opus 20 and the Opus 76—which are earlier and later masterworks. But they’re all at such a high level of achievement & are so satisfying—starting with the Divertimento-style Opus 1 quartets—I think you could safely start anywhere.