Dessau’s String Quartet movement was written while he was also working on Brecht’s opera Puntila. After Brecht’s death in 1956 Dessau found himself looking for a new direction. On the one hand he was still working on music begun in collaboration with the poet, while on the other hand Dessau was trying to work towards a socially oriented musical aesthetic, which led him to compose songs for political purposes. Even this Quartet movement does not owe its inspiration purely to an artistic vision. I...