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A​.​Malcys - Saxchord for tenor saxophone and string quartet (2007)

from Liudas Mock​ū​nas - Polylogues (CD2​)​: Works for solo saxophone, Clarinet and string quartet by Liudas Mockūnas

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ARVYDAS MALCYS (*1957)
Saxchord for tenor saxophone and string quartet (2007)

This work consists of three movements performed without breaks. The first begins with an introduction and the soloist’s recitative that prefaces a long exposition (Allegro vivo) filled with monotonous, gradually accelerating repetitions in the strings, like shimmering colours in a lambent landscape. The second movement stands in sharp contrast with the first and starts with the soloist’s free “Meditation,” in which time seems to halt and sink in the timbral mist. The ensuing pensive episode (Misterioso) brings the saxophone cadenza, while the delicate Adagio grows into Allegro by the end of the movement, which reiterates the somewhat modified solo recitative of the first movement. The playful, light Scherzo in the third movement, with flaunting saxophone virtuosity against the backdrop of muted pizzicato strings, reaches Furioso in the finale and, gradually ebbing away, dissipates into silence.

Beata Baublinskienė

A piece for tenor saxophone and string quartet by Arvydas Malcys, dedicated to the Chordos Quartet and me. My fascination with this work compelled me to repeatedly programme it in concerts where I have performed it not only with the quartet but also with a chamber orchestra – a version written at my request by the composer. The piece is virtuosic in the classical sense, counterbalanced with a dreamy middle movement called “Meditation”. But it could also be conceived as a vehicle for a crazed soloist to blow on top of the string quartet’s steady grooves and restless lines. This shifted perspective becomes especially conspicuous in the grand finale (Scherzo), which was originally meant to be light, easy-going music. In contrast, we interpret it by slowing down the tempo and adding a lot of weight, while the soloist makes a detour from the Western European musical tradition to the Middle East by adding ‘non-traditional’ scales and quarter tones to the improvised lines. Later the piece reaches its final climax, closing with a hysterical improvised duo between cello and saxophone.

Liudas Mockūnas

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from Liudas Mock​ū​nas - Polylogues (CD2​)​: Works for solo saxophone, Clarinet and string quartet, released June 30, 2021

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