STRING QUARTET NO. 1
Written: 1998/2000
Duration: 22'
Instrumentation: string quartet
Winner of the ASCAP Morton Gould Composer Award
Premiere: Cornell Contemporary Chamber Players, Cornell University, Barnes Hall, October 26, 1997.
Second Performace: Intergalactic Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), SCI Conference, Macalester College, St. Paul, MN, March 7, 2003.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music
Program Note
My original intent with this work was to write a set of four independent miniatures. After writing the first maximally-sized one, I decided to change course: these four "miniatures" are now my String Quartet No. 1.
Although these four movements are designed to be independent, small amounts of material are used interchangeably between each movement. Most notably, material from the first two movements is used in the third, and material from the third movement is used in the fourth.
The most prominent aural feature of the first movement, Fast and Sprightly, is the recurring "clarion" motive. This motive evolves into various thematic gestures and also reappears in the next two movements. Another prominent feature of the first movement is the use of jazz references. The string quartet is required to "swing," a style of playing usually only utilized by jazz musicians and big bands.
The second movement, Logy, begins by parodying North American, southern-style country waltzes. While composing this movement, I had visions of my mother interrupting "Three good ol’ boys fiddlin’ on a porch in Rabun Gap, GA," quipping at them to stop. The quipping is represented by the first violinist interjecting the "Rob–ert" theme. This strange, surrealistic daydream probably originates from memories of my mother calling my name from the other side of the bedroom door when I was a boy.
A section called "Andrew Lloyd Webber Disease" occurs in the middle of the second movement. This section is a schizophrenic alternation of a sick, dissonant, violin duo with an Andrew Lloyd Webber-sounding viola and cello duo. By the end of the movement, my mother joins the "Good ol’ boys" for a final song, after they have all become sick from eating too many boiled peanuts.
The third movement, Sad, Luscious Adagio, uses material from the first and second movements, but at a much slower tempo. Each player has a featured solo in this movement: the cellist plays a solo in double-stops and the violinist plays one made up of almost entirely artificial harmonics. The second violin and viola solos are intended to highlight the instruments’ singing qualities and the performers’ lyrical abilities. As with Logy, I use material recycled from previous movements.
Although the fourth movement, Energetic Polka, is not a strict polka, it has a polka-like beginning. It also contains a few short "quotes," the most notable one being the appropriation of the melodic line from the theme song from the television show The Love Boat.
Material from other movements is also used in Energetic Polka, particularly by the cello. The cellist never has a chance to play the "Pseudo-fugato" theme in Logy, so the cellist "aggressively" reintroduces it in this movement. Energetic Polka ends with a section entitled "Hyperfast shimmy and shake."
Press Quotes
“Believers in the pleasure principle should try a new recording of Robert Paterson’s string quartets... a personable brand of music-making that is fast, furious, and laced through with sardonic wit. The carefree First Quartet from 2000 owes a debt to Janácek and jazz, not obvious bedfellows, but Paterson has something of the Czech maverick’s ability to surprise. Full of madcap humor... Gloriously entertaining.”
“If you still believe that contemporary string quartets are always a tough listen then Robert Paterson String Quartets 1-3 in superb performances by the Indianapolis Quartet should change your mind... This is clearly music to be enjoyed... imaginative, hugely entertaining and quite brilliant writing, with Paterson always in total control of style and structure.”
“Probably no one else has created string quartets as irreverent as Robert Paterson’s.... As should be obvious, these are thoroughly engaging works brought vividly and vibrantly to life by the Indianapolis Quartet. Its renderings of the material are so virtuosic and enthusiastic, it would be difficult to imagine another quartet equaling those performed on the release. And how pleasing it is to see the string quartet form reinvigorated with such imagination and verve by Paterson. Other composers would do well to follow his example and consider how they too might bring fresh spins to long-established genres in their own creations.”
“If, like me, you like contemporary music that is not afraid to please while being intellectually rigorous and stimulating, you will fall under the spell of the quartets of Robert Paterson… Propulsive rhythms, exciting play of colours and textures, playing with dissonance effects like so many spices to spice up a dish, but resolutely relying on a tonal centre to keep the listener hooked, Paterson’s sound universe brings together the best in contemporary music of the American school. Better still, he is not afraid to insert quotations from popular music, thus creating surprises with a very sympathetic humorous spring.”
“...a witty contemporary take on the tradition of incorporating popular tunes into art music. Paterson’s quartet abounded in humor and the kernels of rich ideas (such as an Ivesian treatment of country waltzes in the second movement and the clever incorporation of The Love Boat theme in the last movement)...”
“All three quartets combine High Modernism with the rhythmic intensity of an ethnically charged world beyond post-understanding, and also a primal tonal radicality, and then references that channel a kind of universal Pan-Western Globality. Does that make sense? Probably not until you listen... not some typically digested generic item, that it is filled with original twists and turns, and bears attention, giving rewards for all your listening efforts with a set of gemstones, of sparkling elements across a happy beach by the water... Here is one for you if you seek adventure...”
“It’s difficult to pinpoint just what it is about Robert Paterson’s music that makes it interesting, modern and audience-friendly all at the same time. The first thing that leaps out at you, aside from his tongue-in-cheek handling of themes and fast-paced energy, is his rhythmic vitality, and I can tell you from very long experience in reviewing modern music that, except for those few composers who combined jazz elements with their music... emphasizing rhythms that average audiences can follow is a rare commodity... There are no two ways about it: Robert Paterson’s music is both modern in every respect you can think of—harmonically, rhythmically and thematically—but audience-friendly at the same time. It’s a little nutty, but the world needs more humor in classical music. We have far too much of the “oh-God-I’m-so-depressed-and-serious” type... He’s the kind of composer I wish I were if I had a single composing bone in my body.”
“Paterson’s inspirations in [his string quartets] are expansive: swing jazz, fiddle tunes, Broadway duos, TV theme music, abstract expressionistic art, surrealistic art, cartoons, musical clichés for drunkenness, and national anthems. Polkas and waltzes poke through; microtones, incremental pitch modulation, and outright glissandi are effective devices... A response of laughter can be expected, though darkness and wondrous perplexity may also occur.”
“The Indianapolis Quartet presents the world premiere recording of composer Robert Paterson’s first three string quartets. All three highly colorful works have various similarities: they all use copious extended techniques, but not for the sake of the techniques themselves, but as an integral part of the music itself. He also uses quotes in all three works: the loveably campy “Love Boat” theme in Quartet No 1, quotes from music by Edvard Grieg in String Quartet No. 2, and snippets of various anthems in the last movement of String Quartet No. 3.”
“...modern classical appeal is quite fascinating... String Quartet No. 1 opens the listen with quivering strings that move unpredictably and with allure across the 4 chapters of tense, heartfelt and bright musicianship...”