Pleats (2016)
Instrumentation:
2violins, 1 viola, and 1 cello
Durata: 10 mins
Commission: NeoQuartet, project Baltic New Music Spectrum
Premiere: NeoQuartet (Karolina Piątkowska Nowicka, Paweł Kapica, Michał Markiewicz, Krzysztof Pawłowski)
July 9th 2016, Zepernick BERLIN during XXIV. Randfestspiele
Program note:
Pierogi are delicate Polish dumplings based on unleavened dough filled with variety of ingredients, and are the timeless symbol of families and friends gathering together. Every pleat and corner of the pierogi sealing seem to have folded in something familiar from the past. Intimate and fragile - almost Chopinesque.
Compositional idea:
(The following text should NOT be presented to the audience in any form)
In 2014, I was granted a scholarship by the Swedish Arts Grants Committee to make artistic residence in Poland. After visiting and residing in the cities of Wroclaw, Warsaw, Gdansk, and Sopot, it is not possible to avoid my composition not to be influenced by the rich Polish culture, stormy history, strong tradition of music and arts, Chopin, and the most important of all, Polish people and their lives.
During my stay in Gdansk, I was invited to the family of Karolina Piatkowska Nowicka, the first violinist of NeoQuartet. I entered a big house with her family with children, her brother-in-law and his family and children, and her parents-in-law. All lived like a big family, and the dinner started. Karolina made delicious pierogi, Polish dumplings. First of all, the dumplings were so delicious! Second, I suddenly was hit by the sense of family warmness and strength - just like the shape of a pierogi, the dough wrapping (warmly hugging) the filling with beautiful pleats. It was a fantastic evening.
Pleats (2016) for string quartet is all about playing music with wrapping movement with a heart warming expression.
Listen
Watch