Inspired by three young girls at the composer's parish church - sisters, actually - the work is a mischievous composition full of energy and joie de vivre. Each movement is dedicated to one of the three sisters, who were 12, 8, and 6, respectively, at the time of composition. The subtitles of the movements are, for Rosemarie, "toujours active, jamais passive" ("always active, never passive" - in other words, she won't be still); for Brigid, "elle marche pareille en beaute, a la nuit" ("she walks in beauty, like the night" - a quote from Byron); and for Martina, "quand elle rit, le monde s'embrase" ("when she laughs, the world is set ablaze"). |
