Portuguese Modern composer, Fernando Lopes-Graça [1906–1994] wrote two numbered string quartets and several other incidental works in the genre.
The First Quartet contains five movements and covers a considerable emotional territory.
Opening with a triple-meter rhythmic motif, I soon found myself lost in the time as contrasting melodic motifs obscure the placement of the rhythm. The music then proceeds into an unusual passage of harmonised, dissonant lines, which are varied at times. The rhythmic pulse is lessened and the melodies become more sparring and interweaving – this is a most abstract passage. It calls to mind an ethnic sounding version of Philip Glass, with its strong motivic nature, and use of modal scales. A break leads into a most obtuse section of dissonant violin lines to conclude.
The next movement, marked larghetto, is a brilliant piece of writing. This time, a gentle rhythmic motif underpins an expressive violin, which moves into a solo passage. After a brief pause the former mood is recreated, with a shrill violin over a sparse accompaniment. Gradually the mood disintegrates into a period of entropy, before a section of different moods are presented in rapid succession. Now a shrill violin is heard, over glissando strings, leading to a strange but tense moment. A seemingly random, harmonised melody develops – the mournful nature of the music is not of this world. The end comes on a sustained chord.
The third movement again opens with an uncertain rhythmic pattern as various instruments express jarring melodies – a considerable amount of dissonance is heard. A section of wailing violins is most unusual as the instruments move through different registers in a very gentle, but dissonant manner. Now a violin quivers against a cello motif before returning to the rather aimless sound previously heard. A section of call and response is brief before a rhythmic interjection that evokes Shostakovich can be heard. A false ending leads to a period of dynamic intensity that brings on a sharp finish.
The opening of the fourth movement again evokes Shostakovich, with its cello driven folk-like rhythms and melodic lines. Now a cello and shrill violin conversation ensues before moving into a pattern of obtuse melodies that wrap around each other. A return to the opening feeling develops into two violins duelling in another dissonant passage. Several pauses are heard within this movement – the final one ending on an energised flourish.
The finale, marked epilogo (epilogue) – adagio is quite short. I find that it evokes Schoenberg for me. The peaceful nature has not been heard before in this work and it is rather satisfying. Gently sparse, tonally ambivalent melodies meander through this sound space and it really does present the feeling of an epilogue.
This quartet is a bit of a mystery to me. The composer seems to have a grounding in the work of Bartok, Shostakovich and Schoenberg and the writing is very Modern in conception. There appear to be some folk elements expressed, with which I am not familiar, leading to a general air of emotional uncertainty as I navigated the movements. Interestingly, the music is not loud but has an inherent intensity, which is appealing.
The review CD, titled Complete Music for String Quartet and Piano – Volume One, and on the Toccata Classics label, is performed by the Quarteto Lopes-Graça. It contains one long one-movement work, Song of Love and Death for piano quintet, which is rather fascinating, albeit again in a Modern style. There is another work for string quartet, Suite Rustica No. 2, which is in five brief movements and is considerably mellower than the discussed work.
The composer’s Second Quartet is on Volume Two of the same series. It is warmer and less texturally dense than the First Quartet. Both discs can be obtained from Amazon US and UK.
Volumes One and Two are on Spotify and the two quartets can be heard on earsense and YouTube.
Listenability: Mostly dense, rhythmically charged Modern quartet.