During the years of their exile in America, Paul and Gertrud Hindemith regularly met with two young violinists for private music-making. When Hindemith arranged the first of his 'Drei leichte Stücke für Cello und Klavier' (1938) for this string quartet in 1944, he chose an unusual title for the four musicians had discovered their shared enthusiasm for Frankenstein films. There are no records, however, that indicate if this quartet setting played at the Hindemiths' home sounded 'like horror music'.