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The early D major quartet was composed between 1798 and 1800 and though placed third in the set seems to have been the first to be composed. From Beethoven’s middle period comes the third of the ‘Razumovsky’ quartets, which dates from 1808. Unlike the other two in the sequence, it contains no specifically Russian theme, but Russian traits have been suggested in the sparse textures of the second movement. One of the great works of the final period is the C sharp minor piece (1826), in which the composer’s originality of vision reaches a high point.