String Quartet No. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. 131

Ludwig van Beethoven wrote 16 quartets in all. He completed his favourite, the penultimate quartet of 7 movements, lasting about 40 minutes, String Quartet No. 14, in 1826. Beethoven dedicated it to Baron Joseph von Stutterheim, as a gesture of gratitude for taking his nephew, Karl, into the army, after the latter’s suicide attempt. Schumann extolled “the grandeur ….. of human art and imagination” in the composition of this piece of music. And Schubert requested that it be played to him during the final days of his illness. Beethoven passed on before this work was published. Part of the String Quartet was featured in the movies “A Late Quartet” and “Band of Brothers.” 

These are four albums to start with:
Beethoven Complete String Quartets, Quartetto Italiano. Label: Decca.

Beethoven Complete String Quartets, Takacs Quartet. Label: Decca.

Beethoven Around the World, Quatuor Ebene. Label: Erato.

Beethoven The Late Quartets, Calidore String Quartet. Label: Signum Classics.

Reference: Henken, J., (2024), String Quartet No. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. 131. LA Phil.
https://www.laphil.com/musicdb/pieces/3698/string-quartet-no-14-in-c-sharp-minor-op-131