Ludwig van Beethoven completed his String Quartet No. 12 in E major, Op. 127, in 1825. It is the first of his late quartets. Commissioned by Nicolas Galitzin over a year earlier, the work was not ready when it was scheduled to premiere. When it finally premiered by the Schuppanzigh Quartet, it was not well received. Only with subsequent performances by the Bohm Quartet and the Mayseder Quartet did it begin to gain public appreciation. Background String Quartet No. 12, Op. 127, is the first of Beethoven's late quartets and was commissioned by the wealthy Russian prince Nicolas Galitzin, an enthusiast of Beethoven's music. A cellist himself, Galitzin strove to play Beethoven's music, waiting impatiently for him to compose at whatever price he saw fit. Galitzin's commission brought Beethoven back to composing in the string quartet genre after a 10-year absence, and temporarily suspended his financial woes. Beethoven replied to Galitzin on January 25, 1823, requesting 50 ducats for three quartets: Opp. 127, 130, and 131. He committed to completing the first quartet by the end of February or mid-March. At the time, his Symphony No. 9 was taking the majority of Beethoven's time. Therefore he pushed work on Op. 127 back well over a year, completing Symphony No. 9 in February 1824. Analysis Op. 127 has four movements and a typical performance takes 36–38 minutes. Beethoven initially planned two additional movements: one between the first and second, and another between the third and fourth. In the first edition of 1826, published by Schott, the finale had no initial tempo marking other than Finale, and the third movement's opening indication was "Scherzo: Vivace", not "Scherzando vivace". 1st movement: Maestoso The first movement is in sonata form and opens with a six-bar chorale-like Maestoso. The Allegro ensues with the start of the exposition at bar 7 with a more committed tone. The Maestoso has an unusual rhythmic structure. Rhythms of two-bar groups fall in a 5+3 pattern in eighth notes. The metric pulse is in quarter notes. Each of its bars stresses a rising step until ultimately C is reached in the first violin with an elaborate trill leading to the Allegro. Episodic explosions or virtuosic passages occur toward the middle of the development. Contrapuntal texture ensues in the first half of the development. Canons come in with thematic material, leading to thematic material from the C major Maestoso. 2nd movement: