String Quartet No 3

The work is in five movements: ”Introduction and Chorale”, ”Lamento”, ”Back and Forth”, ”United”, and ”Epilogue". The spatial dimension becomes a part of the composition in some of the movements. In the opening, the violins enter from behind the audience, playing a repeated short phrase. In the 2nd movement, "Lamento", the 1st violin acts as a soloist from behind, often as a counterpart to the 2nd violin in front , while in the ”Epilogue” placing the four players near the corners of the hall makes possible a kind of rotating sound in the room.

In the 4th movement, the players are ”United” in front, and it also unites elements from earlier movements and even drone chords from String Quartet No 2 with new material.

All the movements, except no. 2 are based on a 14-note mode spread over 2 ½ octaves. It comprises the 12 tempered notes as well as two non-tempered ones, allowing for approaching harmonic spectra at times, especially in the 5th and parts of the 4th movements.

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