Modern String Quartet Competition!

CLOSED COMPETITION! Winner: Jonah Rapino

Hello everybody!

Well, not a long time ago I organized a string quartet (I am a cellist-composer-student), and we will play (only) modern pieces (XX. century and later). We will try Ligeti, Penderecki, Xenakis, Bartók and some Hungarian composers. ;)

So, that's it! Write a string quartet for us! The winner's string quartet will be performed, and if we could make a good recording, you will get it as a prize!

It can be repetitive, aleatoric, modernist, post-modernist, minimalist.. anything! But.. there are some rules!

The Rules:

- Your piece's length should to be at least 3 and maximum 30 minutes! (very wide range I think)

- Your piece should be modern, or tonal but in a modern way! (Between a Penderecki and a Xenakis piece we can't play something like Bach, Haydn or Debussy, I hope you can understand. But for example Penderecki's Capriccio for Siegfried Palm has something like tonality, because the C major always come back (that's why it's a Capriccio.))

- Use extended techniques! Use your fantasy!!!

- It should be a complete piece. (Not only 2 movements of 3)

- Write a short introduction or preface to your piece. We would like to know, what do you think, what your ideas are ;)

- We need the score in .pdf (the partiture) (send it to: gollam12@gmail.com with the subject 'modern string quartet competition'). If you can't write it in, you can send your hand-wrote score too in images.

- If you can, send a recording (for example MIDI).

- The judges will be us.

For any other information: PM, or write an email, or ask here.

Please, if you decided to give it a try, let me know :)

DEADLINE: July 1st, 2010 (if you are okay with it)

Good luck!

Count me in! *Starts writing*

I might give this a go!!!

in

If I can find some time at all Ill do this! Looks like fun.

Here is a link to my string quartet (divertimento). The work grew from my studies of string quartet writing at Juilliard Fall of 2009. Not a ton to say except it is eclectic stylistically with a few hidden tunes quoted - Jesus Loves Me, A Mighty Fortress IS Our God and a very very brief quote of the opening theme of the slow movement of Brahms 3 rd symphony. I consider the work ranging from very free tonality to revisiting tonality. If you are looking for a ton of extended techniques (though fairly accepted ones - I am not a master of them as Lachenmann is), try the Capriccio first.

http://forum.youngcomposers.com/t24517/divertimento%20for%20string%20quartet/

If you have any questions, pm me here or email me at cgsahar66@yahoo.com

How out can I go?

You guys are presumably comfortable with improvisation / graphical notation...

:hmmm:

Robin go for it - if they do Stockhausen and Xenakis I think graphical notation and improv shouldn't be to great a stretch.

How out can I go?

You guys are presumably comfortable with improvisation / graphical notation...

:hmmm:

yes, i think :) go for it!

We will play a string quartet from Madarász (he is a Hungarian composer), which is I think the most difficult chamber music ever! There are two sheets, on the first you have the score which tells you which register, which tempo and how do you play the notes, which you choose, and on the other sheets, there are diagrams, which tells what is the 'drawing' of the notes and which octave are you in... seriously.. its almost unplayable. so yeah, go for it! Personally, I really love aleatory, I wrote a lot of aleatoric works (the first of them is on YC!). But be careful with it, because it can be dangerous too. :)

Good luck for you guys, as I can see, it will be a very high-level competition. If there will be a lot of good works (and you want) we can play the other works later too ;)

I will tell more about judging later.

happy composing!

Well, I'm working on one right now already. So, we'll see how it goes...

Although I do have a problem with the way you imply that modern music is inherently non-tonal.

"Modern, or tonal in a modern way"

I mean, you know Bartok died like 60 years ago, right? Ligeti and Xenakis are dead as well...

repetitive or minimalistic music can be tonal.. thats okay for us too.

And I think, Stockhausen, Xenakis, Ligeti and Penderecki were/are the most "modern-sounding" composers. No matter if they died or not. If you try to write something more and more and more irrational or contemporary or modern sounds, everybody will just say "hey, that's xenakis!". But if you can, and you'll success, you can have the "Most Modern Prize" :)

go for it!

In all honesty, non tonal music is pretty old fashioned these days.

So? what kind of music will you write? :)

Hello.

Is the whole quartet students at a music-academy? Just concerning what you can play technically on the idividual instruments.I play the violin myself so I know generally what the violin can play, but it would be nice to just know your level.

Hello.

Is the whole quartet students at a music-academy? Just concerning what you can play technically on the idividual instruments.I play the violin myself so I know generally what the violin can play, but it would be nice to just know your level.

good question

no, we aren't at the music-academy, but the two violins and me (the cellist) can play the level of it. For the viola, you'd better write not a too difficult staff (as usual for the viola :) ). But if you write a difficult thing, he'll practise it.. :) so write as you want!

good luck!

Sounds like a great competition and opportunity.

Will definitely be entering.

When/where will the selected piece(s) be performed/will it be a venue where one can collect royalties (not a school, church, etc.)?

Where/how will it be recorded?

As per our brief convo yesterday, I'll send you a score soon. Perhaps another quartet as well.

When/where will the selected piece(s) be performed/will it be a venue where one can collect royalties (not a school, church, etc.)?

Where/how will it be recorded?

As per our brief convo yesterday, I'll send you a score soon. Perhaps another quartet as well.

Good question! To be honest, we are collecting pieces now, in the summer we start to practice and later we will have a solo concert where every selected contemporary pieces will played. There will be a concert recording and if we are good enough, we can make a studio recording, but as we are not professional musicians, the studio recording I think won't be that clear. (I'm too excited in the studio) :) But will see.

So if you win the competition, first you have glory, later it will be performed, and more later you can have the recording :)

I hope you're okay with this, that's all we can offer right now.

Good question! To be honest, we are collecting pieces now, in the summer we start to practice and later we will have a solo concert where every selected contemporary pieces will played. There will be a concert recording and if we are good enough, we can make a studio recording, but as we are not professional musicians, the studio recording I think won't be that clear. (I'm too excited in the studio) :) But will see.

So if you win the competition, first you have glory, later it will be performed, and more later you can have the recording :)

I hope you're okay with this, that's all we can offer right now.

My main questions are: what kind of venue will it be performed in? A church? A concert hall? A school auditorium? A library theater? A community theater?

And what country are you performing this in, since I have a hunch its not the USA.

As I already have a good recording of the piece(s) I'm going to send you, thats not really a primary concern for me, but I figure its something everyone submitting should know.

Can you message me your email address so that I can send you these scores? It'll be a couple days, I want to re-notate the string quartet. It was my first polymicrotonal work, and so I wasn't sure about how I wanted to notate that, and so I'm not exactly happy with it. Now that I've developed my own system of accidentals (which I think works well... especially since its applicable to any temperament) I'd like to re-do the accidentals.

So give me a day or two, give me your email, you'll have the score(s).

EDIT:

Just saw your email in the opening post. So disregard that...

Are you only interested in pieces that are "out there" or also interested in music that is modern AND accessible?

Are you only interested in pieces that are "out there" or also interested in music that is modern AND accessible?

Well this is a big, long conversation that I would like to have with you. But this is not the proper thread to discuss it.

Are you only interested in pieces that are "out there" or also interested in music that is modern AND accessible?

yes, you have the point :)

My main questions are: what kind of venue will it be performed in? A church? A concert hall? A school auditorium? A library theater? A community theater?

And what country are you performing this in, since I have a hunch its not the USA.

As I already have a good recording of the piece(s) I'm going to send you, thats not really a primary concern for me, but I figure its something everyone submitting should know.

Can you message me your email address so that I can send you these scores? It'll be a couple days, I want to re-notate the string quartet. It was my first polymicrotonal work, and so I wasn't sure about how I wanted to notate that, and so I'm not exactly happy with it. Now that I've developed my own system of accidentals (which I think works well... especially since its applicable to any temperament) I'd like to re-do the accidentals.

So give me a day or two, give me your email, you'll have the score(s).

EDIT:

Just saw your email in the opening post. So disregard that...

Firstly in a school auditorium. Later maybe a small concert hall, but I don't know the future yet.

The performance will be in Hungary (Europe). So it's a small country, not thousands of people will hear it.

We are not professionals, so the recording will not be professional, but we'll try our best.

So the main prize is the glory. We will play the piece (if you want) and then you can call yourself as an internationally famous composer :) And later, you can have a recording (firstly concert recording) (if you want).

That's all :) I hope you're okay with this.

If I had known about this a month ago, I would try it out, but I'm only in the state for another week. I'm going to Cleveland for a seminar in composition on the 20th and then going to Vermont on the 27th and won't be back until August. I hope you guys get a good piece and I can't wait to hear how it goes.

Cheers!

Yasamune

Submitted.

Check your email.

Hey all!

You have 2 and a half weeks to go :)

I think I have to write something about judging. So I will be the main-judge, because I am the composer in the team and I can estimate modern pieces. After it I will choose 2 or 3 of them and send them to the other members of the string quartet (if you're okay with this - i mean the copyright of the score and the recording). Then we will discuss together what would we like to play, or what would we like to win this competition :)

There will be a first prize (which we would like to play), and - if we want - there will be a 2nd and a 3rd prize too (if there will be enough pieces).

I would like to make a 'the best arranging prize' because to me it's very important to have a good orchestration in a string quartet.

Maybe there will be more than one pieces, which we would like to play...

So that's all :) Write a good piece! ;)

Good luck all! ;)

is col legno tratto OK, or do you have too expensive bows?

BTW, it is fine when a little hair is added to the wood.