String Quartet No.2 'The Cranning'

About

Buy the score and parts here

This piece is heavily influenced by the traditional music of my native Ireland. There are no traditional Irish melodies in the piece; however throughout the work's four movements there are techniques, modes, rhythms and feelings common to traditional Irish music.

Donegal traditional music has a particularly strong influence on the piece. Donegal fiddlers often use a very attacking bowing technique, which creates a heavy, aggressive sound. This aggressiveness characterises much of the piece and is my way of demonstrating that there’s a lot more to Irish music than the saccharine ‘Celtic’ arrangements that have become synonymous with 'Irish' music in the classical music world.

The title ‘The Cranning’ refers to an ornamentation technique of the Uilleann Pipes, an instrument unique to Ireland. Cranning is used extensively in movement IV where the musicians repeatedly ‘cran’ on low D notes in poly-metric cycles.