Recur

Solo Harp and String Quartet (2016)
16 mins

Recur was commissioned by Aberdeenshire’s Sound Festival, with funds provided by SoundBytes, and composed in 2016 for Ruth Wall and The Sacconi Quartet.   It was premiered at The Lemon Tree, Aberdeen in October 2016.

The piece revolves around one very simple rising melodic fragment.  It is in C minor of all things.  It reappears throughout the piece with varying degrees of similarity.  Initially there is much use of the instruments’ plucking capabilities but as the piece progresses increasingly sustained notes are integrated.   I think the character of the music shifts constantly, sometimes gently over a period of time but occasionally with more obvious sudden kicks.   Ostensibly though, that initial idea seems to crack on through the piece regardless.   Recur lasts about 16 minutes.