The Center Ring

Score-This 35-minute work is in five movements which bears a resemblance to the arch-form principales of Bartok’s fourth quartet. The quartet is based upon a motto composed of even repetitions of a single tone and a sequenceof disjunct minor thirds. There are also four pitch centers recurring throughout the work: C C-sharp G and G-sharp.The String Quartet was commissioned by the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts for the Cleveland Quartet. Thefirst performance was on Oct 26 1995 by the Cleveland Quartet.

Morton Gould's Dialogues for Piano and String Orchestra. This work was commissioned by the Little Orchestra Society of New York. The first performance took place on November 3 1958 by the LittleOrchestra Society with Thomas Scherman as musical director and Morton Gould on Piano.Born in Richmond Hill New York on 10 December 1913 Morton Gould was recognised early on as a child prodigy with theability to improvise and compose. At the age of six he had his first composition published. He studied at the Institute of Musical Art (now the Juilliard School) but his most important teachers were Abby Whiteside (Piano) andVincent Jones (composition).Gould enjoyed an illustrious career. In addition to gaining a Pulitzer Prize for 'Stringmusic' he was Musical America's 1994 Composer-of-the-Year and recieved a Kennedy Center Honor inrecognition of lifetime contributions to American culture.A long-time member of the American Society of Composers Authors and Publishers Gould was elected president of ASCAP in 1986 a post he held until 1994.In 1986 he was elected to the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters. He also served on the board of the American Symphony Orchestra League and on the National Endowment for the Arts music panel.

Gathering (Set of parts)-String Quartet No.2 Hunting: Gathering was commissioned by Doris and Myron Beigler and the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts for the Kronos Quartet. It was first performed by them in December 1987 San Francisco. Duration 24minutes. Score available: CH60972

Ashoob (Calligraphy No. 14) was written for Dariush Saghafi and the Carpe Diem String Quartet. Reza Valis ?Calligraphies? series isa set of an ongoing cycle of works based on the Persian modal system the ?Dastgâh? which he has been composing since2000. The basic compositional material of the work is derived from a fast tempo genre called the ?Reng ? which is usually performed at the end of a traditional Persian music concert. Versions for Persian Santoor with string quartet (original) andfor string quartet only are available from the publisher. The original version was premiered on March 18-20 2016 at the McConnell Arts Center in Columbus Ohio by Dariush Saghafi Santoor and the Carpe Diem String Quartet.

The Banjo in America from Folklore to Factory-This history of the banjo is a second edition of a publication originally published to coincide with a groundbreaking exhibition of the same name at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Museum. Includes information on the instrument's enduring popularity the banjo makers of Boston instruments from the exhibition a glossary and bibliography of the banjo and more.

Irish composer Kevin Volans' work has gained international acclaim over the years. Drawing on a combination of European and African compositional techniques his music displays a unique charm. Volans' distinctive sound is heavilyin demand and since the mid-1980s his work has been performed regularly at such venues as the Pompidou Centre the Royal Albert Hall and the Lincoln Center in New York.This work for string quartet was commissioned by theShobana Jeyasingh Dance Company and was first performed on the 16th December 1990 at the Almeida Theatre London by the Smith Quartet.Set of parts. Score available: CH61341