Program:
Jörg Widmann (Germany, b. 1973), String Quartet No. 3, “Jagdquartett” (2003) Western Hemisphere premiere
David Flynn (Ireland, b. 1977), String Quartet No.2, “The Cranning” (2004-5) Western Hemisphere premiere
Boguslaw Schaeffer (Poland, b. 1929), String Quartet No. 17 (2006) World premiere
Daniel Bernard Roumain [DBR] (US, b. 1972) String Quartet No. 1, “X” (1993) New York premiere
Musicians: David Fulmer and Arthur Moeller, violins; Jen Herman, viola; and Elizabeth Lara, cello.
The performance opens with Jörg Widmann’s String Quartet No. 3, Jagdquartett ("Hunting Quartet") (2003). The third of Widmann’s five string quartets, Hunting Quartet quotes from the finale of Robert Schumann’s piano cycle Papillons, a fragment that pervades the piece as it seems to gallop through an imaginary chase.
In String Quartet No. 2, “The Cranning” (2004-05), David Flynn conveys the essence of traditional Irish music in a contemporary classical setting. While employing techniques, modes, rhy thms and feelings from Irish music, the piece also includes references to African, Balkan, classical, jazz, and rock traditions.
Boguslaw Schaeffer, one of the most prominent leaders of the post-war European avantgarde, composed the evening’s third piece. String Quartet No. 17, in five parts, juxtaposes many different combinations of texture and tempo, sometimes giving the impression of free improvisation. This world premiere comes shortly after Schaeffer’s 80th birthday.
Haitian composer Daniel Bernard Roumain’s String Quartet No. 1, “X” (1993) is the final performance of the evening. The angular, agile and angry sound of X, written in Roumain’s early twenties, reflects the composer’s reaction to the autobiography of Malcolm X. The piece combines selected motifs from Bela Bartok with the composer’s own developing sense of funk.
New York City, NY; NYC