Cello Quartet No. 1

Hey! This is a relatively new project that I've been working on for a while. It's written for 4 celli, with each part generally covering one register of the instrument. The players will be allowed to play different parts for each movement (for example, one player plays 1st in the first mvt, 3rd in the second...). My orchestra teacher has displayed an interest in this, but I am looking for your criticism before the cellists read through it. Constructive criticism, please! :P

I plan on finishing the 4th movement soon!

Cello Quartet Mvt 1.mid

Cello Quartet Movement 2.mid

Cello Quartet Movement 3.mid

Cello Quartet.nwc

Cello Quartet Movement 2.nwc

Cello Quartet Movement 3.nwc

Cello Quartet Mvt 1.pdf

Cello Quartet Mvt 2.pdf

Cello Quartet Mvt 3.pdf

The sound of four instruments of the same timbre is very mellow. I enjoyed these three movements. The two problematic areas I see are some abrupt loud or discordant places that interrupt the flow and a few places where the harmony seems muddy. Just my opinions and I make no claim to be an expert.

Movement 1: the harmony is interesting with a modal feel (in the sense of Aeolian or Phrygian) since there are no accidentals to modulate to a key

as would be used in classical harmony. There are a couple of places where the harmony seems not quite right: bar 3 and bar 28. The piece seems to be ending in bar 38 and then diverges into some new material - the pizzicato in 43-45 is good but the listener expects a repeat. I don't find the violent ending from bar 51 works. My suggestion for a smooth ending would be to jump from bar 38 to bar 59 (putting in a whole rest in bar 38 for the bottom part). Well, a bit drastic, but the material from 39 on could be used in another movement or piece.

Movement 2: I expected the emphasis on beat 2 in bars 19 and 20 to be continued in bar 21, but it wasn't. Bar 22 seems odd to me. The accent on beat one of bar 42 may be just a bit too much - it introduces a scherzo-like surprise into an elegaic mood. Except for bar 27, these are pretty minor quibbles - a good piece.

Movement 3: The accent on the first beat of bar 21 may be too much. I don't find the discord in bar 27 works - I would simply delete bar 27. I find this the best of the three - with some very beautiful sections. It benefits from the added colour of the accidentals. I would really like to hear four real cellos play this!

If you are writing these in order, then they are getting better. I look forward to the 4th movement.

Thank you so much! Really helpful critique :)

Mvt 1: I'm not sure what the weirdness was in measure 3. hmmm, I can see what you mean by the piece lagging on after 38. It's decent material that doesn't seem to fit in any of the other movements, so it will probably be recycled and used in another piece. Ummm, do you think 51-end would make a good finale? Final movement material?

Mvt 2: So was the rhythmic change a good thing? (m.21) Is it the parallelism in m.22 that seems awkward? I kind of like that, but maybe I'm just blindly attached. At 42, what if I made that chord a sustained chord instead short and choppy? Or if the notes weren't accented? I think it would sound a little better if they were quarter notes instead of eighths. What do you think?

Mvt 3: Did you mean the accent in measure 20? OH, but I really like m.27! What if it wasn't accented so's not to be as harsh on the ears?

Mvt 4: :D in progress, and by far, my favorite up til now.

My comments are just suggestions - there is no black/white in music. There are some unusual harmonies in this piece so it's hard to know where some places may be too unusual.

mvt1: m3 in beat 3 the chord is (bottom up) G,G,C,C which is extreme being just fifths. A possibility is to change the top C (sixteenth note) to D and tie it to the previous D (quarter note) - and then change the ascending upwards run of the remaining 3 sixteenth notes to say E, E, F. Well, I see the "culprit" as the G,G,C,C verticality so any way to add a third note might work.

Yes, the section bar 51-end should work as a finale.

mvt2: To preserve the emphasis on the 2nd beat that is present (to my ears) in bars 19 and 20, the half-note C in the middle part could be changed to quarter notes ascending, C-D. In bar 22, in the middle part, I suggest moving the first eighth note up from A to F for a smoother sound.

mvt3: Yes, I had the bar wrong bar - it is 20 - is the accent on the staccato notes on beat 2 necessary (this is a tiny issue)? On further thought, re bar 27, why not do as in bar 28 and have an initial quarter rest, preparing the listener for something new, the "surprise" on beat 2? This works for me. Sometimes a silence can make a big difference.

Again, these are just suggestions - I hope you find them useful.

Thank you again for your tips! I will definitely spend time revising the harmonies you pointed out. At my level of experience, it's hard for me to completely understand what sounds good traditionally, so any insight into that is greatly appreciated :) I finally finished the 4th movement... I think. I will probably revise it like the others, but this is most of the new material that will exist.

Let me know what your thoughts are. Thank you!

Cello Quartet Movement 4.nwc

Cello Quartet Movement 4.mid

Cello Quartet Mvt 4.pdf

ooo, this movement sounds very piratey. :) Begins with a medieval touch to it and then transitions into what is definately a piratey section! :P

It's short, and the ending sort of falters and then drags and then drifts off, but everything up to there is good. I would suggest continuing this piece; developing the melodic material more.