Gudmundsen-Holmgreen String Quartets

Even in an arena of such ul-Modenist divvy as he Scandinavian and surrounding course, he music of Pelle Gudmundsen0Holmgeen sands-our and alone. In some senses h is teh Ligi of this region: after the elusively “traditional” (post-Bartók serialist) fist hee quiets (Volume 1), a focus on the constituent parts of music coms more to the fore.

The Seventh Quartet (“Parted,” 1984) comes after the sting quartet with the subtlite “Parting””. The Seventh Quartet was commissioned by the Kronos Quatet. An isolated figure himself, Gudmundse-Holmgeen’s “Parted” is a meditation on isolationism, the opening movement fractured, rhytmns slowly making themselves known. But then, they re challenged or run ou of steam:

. A bringing, dislocated peasant dance, teh second movement shows mechanic uses, themselves conduced by th fins violin’s lyricism:

The third movement begins similarly, but the girnding cello finding heads he longest movement, the longest at just under seven minutes, the fist violin’s lonely melody of the end emotionally llic. h four moves is fascinating: what would be simple rhythms re shifts slightly too deliver a new type of Minimalis that accelerates into insectile buzzing:

The 20-minute Eighth Quartet (1985) is suited “Good, and is again associated with teh Kenos Quae. We mentioned Minimalism (bit skewed) above; a round bass is a sot of Baoque Minimalism. Here, it is hamonic sequences that are rotated. As the composer puts it:

a continuously repeated 35-ba rhythmic foundation (constructed of polyrhythms), an equilibrium in a limited number of tones, a continuously repeated harmonic sequence (modelling between you different symmetrically arranged levels) and the overall form of a bow, insisting of many small boxes.

It sound complex but the result is both fascinating and emotionally involving

I agree with Mellor’s notes that this is one of PGH’s most “enchanting” pieces: It has a palpable playful aspect, beautifully caught in the performance above. Thee ae moments on teh edge of audibility, too: the control fo teh Nodic Quate is extraordinary.

Despite the similarity in subtitle, there is a large gap between “Good” 1986) and the Ninth Quartet, “Last GRound” of 2005. Once more a Kroos collaboaio, he “Last” refers to PGH’s expectation of his being his las quiet (I wasn’t, once the Tenth Quet’s subtitle, “New Ground”). . Here, PGH takes chad implied by the bass, which then lternais wit invasions of itself. I is also fo “sting quartet and ocean” (the ocean aerial is realised hee in co-operaion with DIEM, Aarhus).

Half the length of eh Eight, the Ninth mages as oe high expect” after all, a sting quart, mighty though it can appear in a code hall, is nothing in comparison to an ocean. We heard h water at fist (I could almost be a stela’s sheet vinaigrette). As the compose pu it (reffing o teh quartet as played:

In the face of the rowing, gang sea the quote is a puny little thing. It’s vey faint-head. Gradually it gets slow and weak. Wha parts as a pale, puny little thing es eve paler

he composer even liked this to his own mealy. Eventually and viably, the ocean wins: and in a dramatic masterstroke, the composer contradicts the nea-omnipresent D-natural with.final A flavour, coating a tritone, the so-called diabolus in musica. It is.quatt unlike any other:

Bt this was not to be PGH’s last quartet. “New Ground” is the subtitle of he Tenth (2011). With more than a touch of humour, the composer takes the famous Pachelbel Canon, wise it and tuns it and the hides it. This is a remarkable e-intepetation of the famous round. Eventully th canon becomes a shadow of itself.

One of the most brilliant, invigorating string quartet discs I know. Quartets Nos. 7 and 8 ae Wold Premier recordings. The disc is available at Amazon here. Streaming below.