• BENNEWITZ, Antonín: instrumentalist, vl
• BAUŠ, František: instrumentalist, vl
• PAULUS, Alfred: instrumentalist, va
• GOLTERMANN, Julius: instrumentalist, vc

Advance news of the annual series of three quartet soirées was published the day before the first concert in Prager Zeitung 30/11/1859, noting that ‘Also in this year’s Advent season will by the Messrs Bennewitz, Bausch, Paulus and Goltermann in the Konvikt Hall be arranged three Quartet Soirées.’ The dates of these performances were given as 1/12/1859, 8/12/1859 and 15/12/1859. A substantial review, signed ‘!!’ of the first soirée appeared in Prager Zeitung 3/12/1859. Similar news, additionally noting that the time of the first production was 4.30pm, appeared in Bohemia 30/11/1859. The newspaper in its Tageskalender on 1/12/1859 confirmed the venue and time of the performance. A lengthy review of the event was then published by Bohemia on 2/12/1859. Prager Morgenpost published the programme of the first soirée on 1/12/1859, listing the tempi of the various quartet movements and reporting that the performance was to begin at 5pm. A major review, published as an article title ‘Das Quartett’ and signed ‘**’ appeared in the periodical on 2/12/1859.

The Czech music periodical Dalibor 1/12/1859 announced that the ‘First quartet entertainment of messers: A. Benevic, Bauš, Paulus and Goltermann will take place this afternoon. The programme is very interesting ...’ The works were then listed and the report concluded that they were ‘three compositions pre-eminent in the sphere of chamber music. The second entertainment will be on the 8th, the third on the 15th of this month.’ No specific review of this these three events was published by Dalibor. However, on 1/1/1860 the periodical published a brief report, signed ‘-l-’ relating that these yearly chamber music productions given in Prague could be traced back to the early years of the century when they were instigated by Pixis. The genre of chamber music was deemed to be very illustrative of a individual composer’s skill and art, and the works given in this series were seen as representative of the gradual evolution of the quartet from Haydn to the most modern works, the latter manifest in the String Quartet in D minor by the Czech composer Frömter played in the second concert. The correspondent praised the performances in general for their masterly contrast of nuance, and in particular the violin playing of Benevic [Bennewitz] which it was noted had gained ‘beautiful tone, fresh and supple’ following his recent travels to France and Belgium.    

The various collated periodical reports identified the works by Haydn and Mozart in this programme as, respectively, in A major, ‘op.20/3’, and in E flat major, ‘no.4’. In the case of the work by Haydn, the op.20 set does include an A major quartet but this was actually published as no.6 (Hob.III:36), ‘no.3’ in the op.20 set being in the key of G minor. The ascription as no.3 would not be unusual given that the six quartets opus 20 were originally published in two sets of three. The Mozart quartet can be identified as K428 in E flat major, no.3 of the six Haydn quartets, published as ‘op.10’. The key of ‘no.4’ of this set (K458) is actually B flat major. However, the Prager Morgenpost 1/12/1859 listing of the programme of this concert specified the tempi of each of the four movements (Allegro ma non tropp, Andante con moto, Menuetto Allegretto and Allegro vivace), enabling a positive identification of both compositions.