Written in London and premiered at the Cheltenham Festival by the New London String Quartet in July 1952. For professionals and advanced students.
£16.95
Written in London and premiered at the Cheltenham Festival by the New London String Quartet in July 1952. For professionals and advanced students.
Written in London and premiered at the Cheltenham Festival by the New London String Quartet in July 1952. For professionals and advanced students.
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Richard Arnell was born in London in 1917 and educated at the Hall School, Hampstead and University College School before entering the Royal College of Music where he studied composition with John Ireland and Piano with Sir John Dykes. It was here that he began his first string quartet which was first performed by the Galimer Quartet at the 52nd Street New York Public Library in 1940. In 1938 he was awarded the Farrar Prize for composition. Between 1939 and 1947 he wrote his first important compositions, including his first three symphonies, concertos for violin and for piano and three string quartets. He was taken up by eminent conductors, among them Leopold Stokowski and Sir Thomas Beecham. From 1943 to 1946 he was music consultant to the BBC's North American Service. In 1947 he returned to England and became a composition teacher at Trinity College of Music, remaining on the staff until his retirement in 1987. He became an Honorary Fellow of the College in 1950 and a Principal Lecturer in 1981. He was appointed as music director and board member of the London International Film School from 1975 to 1988 when he retired. Arnell died in 2009.
String Quartet
This sixth string quartet is in six sections, played almost without a break. Begun in 1987 the work was subsequently abandoned, then restarted in 1990 and completed in May 1992. Premiered at the Cheltenham Music Festival. For professionals and advanced students.
String Quartet
A solid, serious work for aspiring string quartets or established groups, this piece was the subject of a master class from the Wihan Quartet from the Czech Republic. The quartet, inspired by Janáček's Intimate Letters quartet, was similarly inspired by letters from a woman to her lover. It is scored in three contrasting movements consisting of a gestural first movement, a slow arch form second movement and a fiery syncopated 5/4 finale.
'Frisco by those in the know is a jewel of a city. The titles of the four movements tell it all - Keeping Ahead of yourself is what you have to do in a city with a glorious past but an uncertain and uneasy present. Light Reflecting from the Bridge seems to warm the whole city, bathing it in a gently reddish hue. Alongside the pathway in one of the city parks is a sand track for horses, and every now and then you see Footprints in the Sand, some are in couples, others alone. The thoughts of those people who are alone touches you, but it is the Time to Be Certain and you regain your beliefs and confidence.
String Quartet
Written in New York in 1945 and premiered by the Blech String Quartet on the 30th June 1945 at the Cheltenham Festival, the heart of this quartet is its beautifully integrated slow movement. For professionals and advanced students.
String Quartet
A musical representation of the city or area of the titles as experienced by the composer. The music is drawn from pop, rock, jazz and jazz funk.
A contemporary work in one movement that was begun in 1939 when the composer was in his fourth and last year at the Royal College of Music. It was completed in New York, receiving its first performance on the 21st April 1940 by the Galimir Quartet in a series of concerts promoted by the New York Public Library.