1995 Music

Meditations for String Quartet (Or, String Orchestra)

Elia, Anthony J.

This work, written on May 28, 1995, during a period when the composer was working on a substantive number of chamber works, is a short and meditative piece~hence, the name. The work was intended to be a short and slow piece, but it is recommended that the piece be performed variously and repetitively. For instance, a quartet or string orchestra may try to play the piece more quickly the first time, while gradually slowing down as the work is repeated. The work may be played and repeated 5, 10, 15, or more times, slowing down until the performers feel the piece has ended, as if it were a process of meditation. In this sense, it may also be seen as a "reverse Bolero" style piece.