Raymond Deane (b. 1953): Equali (String Quartet IV) – The title is both a silent homage to Beethoven (one of his own Equali for 4 trombones was played at his funeral) and a reference to my 3d quartet, Inter Pares (1999).
The whole work is based on a simple harmonic/melodic idea in many disguises: the “four spaces”, f, a, c, e. This ensures that the musical language, while never tonal, is haunted by tonality (or by its absence!). The first 4 short movements concentrate primarily on specific elements: harmonics (I), fast repetitions (II), slow repetitions (III), and trills (IV). The 5th and longest movement combines a contrapuntal Adagio with memories of the preceding movements. Accelerating repetitions lead to an assertive close.