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STRING ORCHESTRA REPERTOIRE

This page explores contemporary string orchestra repertoire. The collection features original string orchestra compositions from the 20th and 21st centuries, showcasing modern string orchestra works and pieces by contemporary composers.

BETWEEN TWO COASTS

for string orchestra

String Orchestra Repertoire

Duration:

14 minutes
 

Instrumentation:

string orchestra

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Year Composed:  

2009
 

Written For:
Das Georgische Kammerorchester
Ariel Zuckermann, conductor

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Commissioned By:
Das Georgische Kammerorchester

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Premiere Performance:

18 March 2010
Ingolstadt, Germany
Das Georgische Kammerorchester
Ariel Zuckermann, conductor

"Between Two Coasts" for string orchestra

About Between Two Coasts

Between Two Coasts is a 14‑minute work for string orchestra that reflects the emotional landscape of immigration — the pull between a cherished past and the promise of a new beginning. The music inhabits the space between memory and aspiration, shaped by the inner debates, longings, and quiet resilience of those who build a life far from the place they once called home. Through shifting textures and lyrical lines, the piece captures the feeling of standing between two worlds: one coast remembered, one coast hoped for, and the heart suspended somewhere in between.
 

For the Performers

Level: For professional string orchestras and advanced conservatory ensembles.
 

Programming: Ideal for concerts exploring themes of identity, migration, memory, and cultural transition; also effective in contemporary string‑orchestra programs.

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Program Notes

Between Two Coasts for string orchestra explores the thoughts, struggles, and inner debates that run through the minds and hearts of people who have immigrated to a new land, seeking prosperity and fulfilling their dreams—a dream that could not be fully realized in their homeland. Despite this, part of their hearts remains anchored there, where the landscapes, sounds, smells, and everyday conversations evoke memories of a cherished childhood.

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Between Two Coasts was commissioned by Ariel Zuckermann and the Georgian Chamber Orchestra, and is dedicated to them.

significant 20th and 21st-century works for string orchestra

  • John Adams – Shaker Loops – 1978

  • Béla Bartók – Divertimento for String Orchestra – 1939

  • Samuel Barber – Adagio for Strings – 1936

  • Luciano Berio – Duetti per Due Violini (adaptable for string orchestra) – 1979–83

  • Benjamin Britten – Simple Symphony – 1934

  • Elliott Carter – Elegy for Strings – 1943 (rev. 1952)

  • Aaron Copland – Clarinet Concerto (for clarinet and string orchestra) – 1948

  • George Crumb – Black Angels (for amplified string quartet, often adapted for string orchestra) – 1970

  • Philip Glass – Symphony No. 3 (for string orchestra) – 1995

  • Henryk Górecki – Three Pieces in Old Style – 1963

  • Hans Werner Henze – Trauer-Ode für Margaret Geddes (for 6 cellos) – 1980

  • Wojciech Kilar – Orawa – 1986

  • György Ligeti – Ramifications – 1968–69

  • Witold Lutosławski – Funeral Music (Muzyka żałobna) – 1958

  • James MacMillan – Memento (originally for string quartet, sometimes performed by string orchestra) – 1994

  • Krzysztof Penderecki – Chaconne in Memory of John Paul II – 2005

  • Arvo Pärt – Fratres (version for string orchestra) – 1977

  • Alfred Schnittke – Concerto for Piano and String Orchestra – 1979 (This is the most common Schnittke concerto for string orchestra. There is no widely recognized stand-alone "Concerto for Strings" from 1988.)

  • Dmitri Shostakovich – Chamber Symphony, Op. 110a (arr. Barshai from String Quartet No. 8) – 1960

  • John Tavener – The Protecting Veil – 1988

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