Alliteratio

Alliteratio
Writing music on pre-existing material has always interested composers. In a way, it gives the composer a chance to engage directly with the past. In Alliteratio this dialogue occurs in multiple levels. The piece is entirely based on Machaut's Kyrie from Messe de Notre Dame. It starts with a quotation from Machaut and as it dissolves into the main body of the work, the viola borrows fragments from Machaut while at the same time cantus firmus dictates the underlying structure of the piece. The title refers to the repeated occurrence of the note A, which occasionally triggers fragments from Machaut.