Instrumentation
solo viola (in scordatura)
Duration
11 minutes
Program Note
Scordatura, or the process of detuning the strings on a string instrument from where they normally sit, is an idea that has always fascinated me. To hear, not to mention play an instrument in scordatura is perhaps the closest approximation of surrealism in music: the characters of strings are changed, previously unavailable sonic possibilities are now readily possible, and the very way the instrument resonates, once intimately familiar, now feels alien.
The most famous (and extensive) example of scordatura in the string literature is doubtlessly the Rosary Sonatas of Biber, and so as a sort of homage to that collection much of the material in this piece derives from a theme presented in the manner of a chaconne, a self-consciously Baroque musical device. More so than that form, however, the focus of this piece is on the two lower strings, which in their detuning offer a wealth of new musical horizons.
Selected Performances
Tristan Wilson, viola
June 1, 2025
University at Buffalo (Amherst, NY)
Tristan Wilson, viola
February 25, 2024 (World Premiere)
Cleveland Institute of Music (Cleveland, OH)
Tristan Wilson 