dualities and symmetries (2024)

33′; double string quartet and viola da gamba

I sought to create a piece that is symmetrical temporally, harmonically, and physically, revolving around the dualities that emerge from the relationship between rhythm (time) and pitch (frequency). The ensemble—two string quartets and a viola da gamba—is arranged symmetrically around the viola da gamba. The gamba takes on the special role of a central pitch axis, with the pitch material, in just intonation, structured symmetrically above and below it. Temporally, the piece is organized into sections using ratios, whose numbers are related to the pitch axis. Because such ratios are themselves symmetrical, the piece is arranged as a palindrome: after reaching its midpoint, it retraces itself note by note.

Because the piece reverses on itself halfway through, the difference between “real” time and “musical” time becomes exposed: the music is expressed backward, but we experience time only linearly. Reminding us of this difference, the instruments gradually fall out of tune over the course of the work, worn by the passage of time.

[SCORE]

Written for The Van Swietens, conducted by Thibault Back de Surany.

dualities and symmetries was submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Music (Composition) at Stony Brook University, May 2024.