Liner Notes
Cat. No. NWCRL402
Release Date: 2011-02-15
Shepherd String Quartet: Ronald Patterson, violin; Raphael Fliegel, violin; Wayne Crouse, viola; Shirley Trepel, cello; Pro Arte Quartet: Norman Paulu, violin; Martha Francis, violin; Richard Blum, viola; Parry Karp, cello
Paul Cooper has submitted the following notes:
“The Quartet No. 6 was completed in December of 1977. It consists of two movements and coda, each portion of which becomes shorter in duration. In its emotional intensity and its emphasis on the pitch C-sharp, the piece is a homage to Beethoven's Quartet, Op. 131.
“The first movement opens with an imitation of wind chimes. Later, dense harmonic textures are contrasted with scurrying figures, both derived from the opening bell-like sounds.
“The second movement is a whirl-wind of motion derived from two 3-note cells — one dark, the other bright. Unlike the rhapsodic first movement, this movement resembles a Classical rondo: A B A C A.
“The coda — thirty-nine measures in length — calls for the players to hold and play their instruments like Renaissance viols. The final measures reveal the emotional values of serenity, seriousness, and above all, warmth and spirituality.
Paul Lansky writes:
“My String Quartet, dedicated to George Perle, began, in 1971, as a determined attempt to deal with some compositional ideas on which I had been working. After hearing its first performance several years later, I realized that I had packed forty minutes worth of music for what should have been a much shorter trip, and that without such heavy baggage it would be a more pleasant and interesting journey. I therefore decided, in 1977, to drastically revise, compress and rewrite it. While I was concerned that six years' distance might obscure some of the original conception, I felt that the experience I had gained in the intervening time would more than compensate for this possibility. As it turned out, the effort was justified since the process of revision was filled with interesting and enlightening experiences and culminated in a series of excellent rehearsals with the Pro Arte Quartet in which a great deal of the string writing and notation was considerably improved by the players' perceptive suggestions. I now have a piece which seems to travel across some interesting landscapes, rather than twist through circuitous mazes.
This title, originally issued on the CRI label, is now available as a burn-on-demand CD (CD-R) or download in MP3/320, FLAC or WAV formats. CD-Rs come in a protective sleeve; no print booklet or jewel case included. Liner notes are accessible via the link above.
Paul Cooper has submitted the following notes:
“The Quartet No. 6 was completed in December of 1977. It consists of two movements and coda, each portion of which becomes shorter in duration. In its emotional intensity and its emphasis on the pitch C-sharp, the piece is a homage to Beethoven's Quartet, Op. 131.
“The first movement opens with an imitation of wind chimes. Later, dense harmonic textures are contrasted with scurrying figures, both derived from the opening bell-like sounds.
“The second movement is a whirl-wind of motion derived from two 3-note cells — one dark, the other bright. Unlike the rhapsodic first movement, this movement resembles a Classical rondo: A B A C A.
“The coda — thirty-nine measures in length — calls for the players to hold and play their instruments like Renaissance viols. The final measures reveal the emotional values of serenity, seriousness, and above all, warmth and spirituality.
Paul Lansky writes:
“My String Quartet, dedicated to George Perle, began, in 1971, as a determined attempt to deal with some compositional ideas on which I had been working. After hearing its first performance several years later, I realized that I had packed forty minutes worth of music for what should have been a much shorter trip, and that without such heavy baggage it would be a more pleasant and interesting journey. I therefore decided, in 1977, to drastically revise, compress and rewrite it. While I was concerned that six years' distance might obscure some of the original conception, I felt that the experience I had gained in the intervening time would more than compensate for this possibility. As it turned out, the effort was justified since the process of revision was filled with interesting and enlightening experiences and culminated in a series of excellent rehearsals with the Pro Arte Quartet in which a great deal of the string writing and notation was considerably improved by the players' perceptive suggestions. I now have a piece which seems to travel across some interesting landscapes, rather than twist through circuitous mazes.
This title, originally issued on the CRI label, is now available as a burn-on-demand CD (CD-R) or download in MP3/320, FLAC or WAV formats. CD-Rs come in a protective sleeve; no print booklet or jewel case included. Liner notes are accessible via the link above.
Cooper / Lansky: String Quartets
| MP3/320 | $7.99 | |
| FLAC | $7.99 | |
| WAV | $7.99 | |
| CD-R | $7.99 |
A *.pdf of the notes may be accessed here free of charge.
Track Listing
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Quartet No. 6: I. -
Paul Cooper
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Quartet No. 6: II. -
Paul Cooper
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Quartet No. 6: Coda
Paul Cooper
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String Quartet: I. -
Paul Lansky
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String Quartet: II. -
Paul Lansky
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Buy
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String Quartet: III. -
Paul Lansky
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Buy
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