The string quartet contains four movements and lasts around 35 minutes. The movements are as follows: * Allegro moderato in G major and 2/4 time * Adagio ma non troppo in E-flat major and 3/8 time * Molto vivace in B minor and 3/4 time, more like a rondo with episodes in A flat major and D major for trios than a typical scherzo, as is more often found in this place in a string quartet in the Romantic music era. * Finale. Andante sostenuto – Allegro con fuoco The brief Andante sostenuto is in 4/4 "common" time, introduces a finale in 2/4 time, and interrupts it toward the end of the work. The finale is in the work's main key of G major.