String quartet (2
violins, viola and
violoncello) - Grade 4-5
SKU: ET.QC17
Composed by
Julien-Francois Zbinden.
Contemporary. Score and
parts. Editions BIM
#QC17. Published by
Editions BIM (ET.QC17).
ISBN
9790207024671.
The
Quatuor No. 1 op. 60, of
limited duration, as well
as the short piece
Alligun, are perhaps the
inspirational source that
motivated me, late in
life, to undertake the
composition of an
important string quartet,
requiring that I once
again confront the
perennial challenge of
that instrumental
setting.
The 25
minute work consists of
four very diverse and
contrasting
movements.
The first
– Lento - Allegro
- opens with a slow and
mysterious introduction
followed by a joyful
rhythmic episode, while
the second –
Scherzando molto vivo
– is simply
virtuosic game-playing,
with the four bows flying
around freely.
The
third – Adagio
– is very
dramatic, slowly evolving
into a mood of meditation
and tenderness.
The
last movement –
Allegrissimo – is
an homage to contrapuntal
style and requires great
virtuosity on the part of
the performers.
The
first performance was
given March 6 2012 by the
string quartet, Sine
Nomine (the dedicacee),
at the Théâtre de
l’Octogone in
Pully (Lausanne),
Switzerland.
Julien-François
Zbinden, august 2011,
Lausanne,
Switzerland.
