String Quartet: Three Memories (1996)
String Quartet: Three Memories grew out of my involvement with Irish traditional music. The first movement, Lament, was begun during a trip to Ireland in 1994. I was moved by all the mists and peaceful empty space in Connemara, but the abandoned potato furrows on the hills speak of unbearable loss. The second movement, The Tall-Eared Fox and the Wild-Eyed Man was motivated by experiences that I had while traveling in western Wales, around St. David's Head. I was amazed by the beauty of the place, and found myself thinking about my time there for years afterward. I spent several days quietly walking along the staggering sea cliffs, gazing out over the ocean, and occasionally falling asleep on the warm mossy rocks. The first movement, Lament, is based on the traditional Irish form of the slow air or lament, and aims to capture the sense of sadness and loss that mingles with the peace and sea mists of the countryside. The second movement, The Tall-Eared Fox and the Wild-Eyed Man, consists of two straight-forward jigs. In Irish dance music there is a tendency for tune titles to make rather prosaic reference to daily life; titles such as "Boiled Goat's Milk" and "The New Toyota" abound. In my case, I happened to see a fox with very tall ears standing with his nose to the wind in a field by the ocean. Later, while walking down a steep back road I was passed by a farm cart, in which was a man with the wildest eyes I have ever seen. He was standing up, facing the rear of the wagon with his head thrown back, long, knotted hair streaming, swaying violently from side to side with his arms outstretched, looking right at me, and he was laughing --
It struck me as an admonition that we should live life like we make music, with love, a deep sense of the simple and overwhelming beauty around us, and with wild abandon.
String Quartet: Three Memories grew out of my involvement with Irish traditional music. The first movement, Lament, was begun during a trip to Ireland in 1994. I was moved by all the mists and peaceful empty space in Connemara, but the abandoned potato furrows on the hills speak of unbearable loss. The second movement, The Tall-Eared Fox and the Wild-Eyed Man was motivated by experiences that I had while traveling in western Wales, around St. David's Head. I was amazed by the beauty of the place, and found myself thinking about my time there for years afterward. I spent several days quietly walking along the staggering sea cliffs, gazing out over the ocean, and occasionally falling asleep on the warm mossy rocks. The first movement, Lament, is based on the traditional Irish form of the slow air or lament, and aims to capture the sense of sadness and loss that mingles with the peace and sea mists of the countryside. The second movement, The Tall-Eared Fox and the Wild-Eyed Man, consists of two straight-forward jigs. In Irish dance music there is a tendency for tune titles to make rather prosaic reference to daily life; titles such as "Boiled Goat's Milk" and "The New Toyota" abound. In my case, I happened to see a fox with very tall ears standing with his nose to the wind in a field by the ocean. Later, while walking down a steep back road I was passed by a farm cart, in which was a man with the wildest eyes I have ever seen. He was standing up, facing the rear of the wagon with his head thrown back, long, knotted hair streaming, swaying violently from side to side with his arms outstretched, looking right at me, and he was laughing --
It struck me as an admonition that we should live life like we make music, with love, a deep sense of the simple and overwhelming beauty around us, and with wild abandon.