John McCabe

This Quartet was commissioned by the Delme String Quartet to whom it is dedicated. First performed by the Quartet London 1982. Duration 20 minutes. Parts for this work are also available for sale.

Commissioned by the Presteigne Festival of Music and the Arts Limited with funds provided by the Arts Council of Wales for premiere in August 2012 by the Carducci String Quartet in St. Andrew?s Church Presteigne.Composer's Note'Some years ago I noted down the opening theme of what I anticipated would be a relatively Classical string quartet ?Classical? in the sense of the forms adopted plus perhaps a predominantly lyrical tone of voice. The commission for this work from the Presteigne Festival for their 30th anniversary in 2012 gave me the opportunity of putting into practice this long-held idea. It isdedicated to the Festival and to the Carducci Quartet whose career as much-admired friends and colleagues I have greatly enjoyed.The only break with ?classical? tradition is that there are five movements instead of four with two Scherzi as the second and third though both these are very short and contrasting. I found myself listening to Haydn?s string quartets a lot before and during the composition of this work and I hope the spirit of his delight in writing for this medium is echoed in my own music. The opening movement is in sonata form unusually for me and lyricism is I hope the basis of it though there is a good deal of activity at times. The Scherzo light and marked by frequently-changing rhythms is followed by an equally short but ferocious Perpetuum mobile marked Wild und rasch (one of my favourite German tempo markings). The fourth movement is an intense Adagio in which a single phrase uttered strongly in unison is gradually transformed into gentle diatonic chords before the close intermingled with cadenzas for cello for viola and for the two violins together. The finale (a Rondo) resumes the classical tone of the first movement but apart from one dance-like episode it builds up a fair head of steam towards a final Presto which however ascends slows and quietens towards a gentle summer sky at dusk.'

Spielend for two violins was written during the summer and early autumn of 2003 and is based on the idea of the two instruments not only playing the instruments but also playing in the sense of sport i.e. playing their themes off against each other and playing with the musical material. There are times for instance when they seem to be having a contest to see who can finish the themes first or who can divert the other’s attention to a new texture or rhythm. The title the German word for 'playing' also refers in a way to the composer himself exploring the themes harmonies and rhythms - particularly notable in this respect is the large central slow section which contraststwo altered reminiscences of the Violin Sonata of Poulenc (a composer whose music is very dear to me) with the gradual expansion of a fugue from two parts to eight (four in each violin). Fugue after all is in a sense an example of a composer making sport however seriously with the themes.So the work is a kind of extended musical pun lasting about fifteen minutes in all and being performed without a break. Though the central section is slow the outer ones are quick and energetic emphasizing especially the idea of activity and vigour - the ending however may catch the unwary listener by surprise.The first performance was given by Philippa Mo and Peter Sheppard Skærved in Leighton House London on 7th May 2004.'John McCabe's new 'Spielend' strikes me as a miniature masterpiece: a highly charged 15-minute piece in which the violins chase or echo each other in a thousand different ways including a fugure in which as with Bach two instruments seemed to suggest a dozen voices.'            - Richard Morrison The Times 11/05/2004

This was first performed by Martin Milner with the Hallé Orchestra conducted by Maurice Handford in the Free Trade Hall Manchester in March 1963 being broadcast some months later. The work and its general shape were suggested by T. S. Eliot's poem The Hollow Men and the scoring includes a large percussion section

April Sonatina is a work composed by John McCabe for Solo Violoncello in 2011/2. The piece lasts around 3 minutes and was dedicated to David Matthews on the occasion of his 70th birthday.