Katoavainen

by Anna Huuskonen

Drømde mik en drøm i nat - Mundanis vanitatibus

for string quartet

Description

My second string quartet, Katoavainen, was composed for the Segïa project of the Danish-US string quartet Taïga. Five new works by Nordic composers were commissioned for the project, and these were put together into a coherent performance of about an hour's duration, including lighting and costumes for the quartet.

All the works in the project are based on the Icelandic saga of the Burnt Njáll. The saga is vast, complex and truly brutal. In my own work, I originally wanted to comment on the violence of the saga through silent protest, but somehow the violence managed to slip into the music. My work also borrows two old songs: the oldest known secular song in the Nordic countries, Drømde mik en drøm i nat (I dreamed a dream last night), and the song from the Piae Cantiones collection, Mundanis vanitatibus (Worldly vanities).

Instrumentation

2vln, vla, vlc

Category

Chamber Works

Premiere

Taïga String Quartet, Godsbanen, Aarhus, 26 September 2019

Commisioned by / dedications

Commissioned by Taïga String Quartet for their project Segïa

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Archive number

MF35965

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