Ian Venables' The Song Of The Severn is a cycle of songs in celebration of Worcestershire scored for Baritone Voice String Quartet and Piano. “The Song of the Severn…clothes poems by Masefield Housman John Drinkwater and Philip Worner in sharply memorable music of bewitching lyricism idiomatic grace and rapt instinct…No lover of the early-20th-century English art song or pastoral tradition should fail to investigate this notable issue.” - Andrew Achenbach Gramophone “These five songs for voice with piano and string quartet accompaniment take the Severn Riverand its historical and natural associations as a common theme. They are absolutely stunning in their poignant beauty their profoundly noble and moving sense of tragedy and desolation that never turns sentimental or lachrymose and their perfect union of text and music to a level that rivals Schubert and Mahler.” - James A. Altena Fanfare Magazine

Homunculus is a short (circa 12 minutes) work for string quartet which the composer wrote during the Autumn months of 2007 for the Johannes Quartet.He wanted to compose a piece that would be very compact in form andduration but still contain many different characters and textures. In other words a little piece that behaves like a big piece.He has long been fascinated (and amused) by the arcane spermists’ theory who held the beliefthat the sperm was in fact a 'little man' (homunculus) that was placed inside a woman for growth into a child. This seemed to them to neatly explain many of the mysteries of conception. It was later pointed out that if the spermwas a homunculus identical in all but size to an adult then the homunculus may have sperm of its own. This led to a reductio ad absurdum with an endless chain of homunculi. This was not necessarily considered by spermists afatal objection however as it neatly explained how it was that 'in Adam' all had sinned: the whole of humanity was already contained in his loins.He decided to call my piece Homunculus despite the obvious weaknesses of thespermists’ thinking as he found the idea of a perfect little man strangely moving.

Introducting his new player-friendly edition of the Haydn Quartets Simon Rowland-Jones writes: 'There can be no such thing as a final perfect version; Haydn left too many questions open.'The new Peters Edition is founded upon this honest assessment. By heightening our awareness of the questions that remain 'open' this edition liberates the interpretative inspiration of performers as never before. As a result the new edition is likely to become indispensable for all who perform or study these masterpieces.Each volume includes: Full Score - included with the parts for the first time - invaluable forperformance preparationFold-out Pages - as required in the separate parts eliminating all page-turns within movements Guidance for Performers - as well as giving historical background to the quartets the prefaces to each volume contain a treasure trove of information about all aspects of performance practice Critical Commentary - in the extensive Critical Commentary to each volume the most authoritative early sources for Haydn's quartets are carefully evaluated and full details of their variant readings given for comparison. Naturally the composer's autograph where extant assumes pre-eminence but alternative primary sources are also considered and secondary sources drawn upon where appropriate. The Publishers and Editors gratefully acknowledge the generous support for editorial research given by the Radcliffe Trust the Arts and Humanities Research Board the Royal College of Music and the Royal Northern College of Music.

A collection of movie hits wonderfully arranged for intermediate and advanced level string quartets. Perfect for high school, university, and professional quartets! The optional bass parts also allow for use in the high school, university or community orchestra. Just the thing to read through at wedding receptions, parties, and other events. / Quatuor A Cordes

These two chamber music works are one of the main focuses in the oeuvre of Ulvi Cemal Erkin. Lively and spirited, they combine Western European tradition with rhythmic and melodic elements from Turkish folk music. Both are perfectly suitable for music lessons and concert recitals, adding a new interesting colour to the common chamber music repertoire.Erkin (1906-1972) is one of the most important composers of Turkey. He studied piano and composition in France and later returned to his home country where he became professor in Ankara. / Quatuor A Cordes