String Quartet No. 1 (1989)

 

Premiere performance: The Lyric Ensemble, Key Gallery, Richmond, VA, 1993

Steve Pershing, violin; Cecil Hooker, violin; Frank Albert, viola; & Linda Kapusciarz, cello

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COMPOSER'S NOTES

String Quartet No.1 dates from a period of intense musical productivity during my graduate study in music composition at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. Influenced by contemporary classical as well as rock music, the piece begins with driving rhythmic force and gains gravity as it progresses. Each of the three movements (I. Black, II. Fugato, and III. Rock) has its own color and intensity, all resulting in a vibrant sonic landscape made up of music that is both challenging and accessible.
    String Quartet No.1 had its premiere performance in 1989 at the VCU Performing Arts Center in Richmond, Virginia, by the Lyric Ensemble, a group I directed for more than ten years. Additional performances of the piece by the Lyric Ensemble took place in Richmond’s Key Gallery and at the home of Edmond Rennolds, founder of the Richmond Symphony and esteemed supporter of the arts. The work was performed again in 2004 by Camerata Virtuosi New York as part of the Festival of the Arts in Richlands, Virginia.