4 on 5 |
for unaccompanied solo cello
Duration: ~7'30"
Commissioned and premiered by Timothy Mar; November 11, 2016, San Francisco Conservatory of Music
When my friend Tim Mar asked me fall to write him a piece for solo cello in the fall of 2015, I had just finished a solo viola piece as part of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s annual Viola Project. At that point, the last thing I wanted to write next was another solo string piece. 4 on 5, at first, seems like a nod to the Wes Montgomery standard Four on Six. My title has a few hidden meanings, the first of which is the most obscure – the number forty-five in Roman numerals is XLV, which also stands for “extra-large viola.”
Before I started writing, Tim encouraged me to incorporate jazz elements. There were two popular jazz standards that have acted as my original inspirations – Freedom Jazz Dance by Eddie Harris and So What by Miles Davis (I frequently quote the latter’s iconic voicing of three stacked fourths with a third on top, but as a melodic line instead of a chord). At the time, I was resistant to tap into my jazz roots, but I’ve always had an affinity for using fourths which is so typical of the jazz idiom. The other meaning of 4 on 5 refers to this persistent use of fourths on an instrument designed on fifths – this piece is a juxtaposition of quartal vs. quintal chords.
At the premiere, Tim wanted to pair this piece next to Ligeti’s Sonata for Solo Cello. Knowing this, I intended the structure of 4 on 5 to be loosely based on Ligeti’s, which begins with a slow Dialogo that leads into an intense Capriccio. Conversely, my piece is built on a large 3-part structure, fast-slow-fast. The slow section takes some obvious material from Ligeti, such as the sliding pizzicato chords and even a brief, but blatant, quote of his opening theme.
Duration: ~7'30"
Commissioned and premiered by Timothy Mar; November 11, 2016, San Francisco Conservatory of Music
When my friend Tim Mar asked me fall to write him a piece for solo cello in the fall of 2015, I had just finished a solo viola piece as part of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s annual Viola Project. At that point, the last thing I wanted to write next was another solo string piece. 4 on 5, at first, seems like a nod to the Wes Montgomery standard Four on Six. My title has a few hidden meanings, the first of which is the most obscure – the number forty-five in Roman numerals is XLV, which also stands for “extra-large viola.”
Before I started writing, Tim encouraged me to incorporate jazz elements. There were two popular jazz standards that have acted as my original inspirations – Freedom Jazz Dance by Eddie Harris and So What by Miles Davis (I frequently quote the latter’s iconic voicing of three stacked fourths with a third on top, but as a melodic line instead of a chord). At the time, I was resistant to tap into my jazz roots, but I’ve always had an affinity for using fourths which is so typical of the jazz idiom. The other meaning of 4 on 5 refers to this persistent use of fourths on an instrument designed on fifths – this piece is a juxtaposition of quartal vs. quintal chords.
At the premiere, Tim wanted to pair this piece next to Ligeti’s Sonata for Solo Cello. Knowing this, I intended the structure of 4 on 5 to be loosely based on Ligeti’s, which begins with a slow Dialogo that leads into an intense Capriccio. Conversely, my piece is built on a large 3-part structure, fast-slow-fast. The slow section takes some obvious material from Ligeti, such as the sliding pizzicato chords and even a brief, but blatant, quote of his opening theme.