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HOPE CYCLES (string quartet no. 2)
for string quartet
Duration:
24 minutes
Instrumentation:
violins (2); viola and cello
Year Composed:
2004
Written For:
Borromeo String Quartet
Commissioned By:
Koussevitzky Music Foundation
for the Borromeo String Quartet
Premiere Performance:
Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival
The Borromeo String Quartet:
Nicholas Kitchenm violin
Kristopher Tong, violin
Mai Motobuchi, viola
Yeesun Kim, cello
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Program Notes:
String Quartet No. 2 – “Hope Cycles,” in one movement, focuses on the endless conflict between Palestinians and Israelis in the Middle East from the perspective of ordinary individuals. As an Israeli myself, I often struggle to convey to European/American audiences the true tragedy: that of the individual person, rather than the sanitized images often presented in the media.
The music captures feelings of fear, hate, anger, love, remorse, and the claustrophobia and uncertainty of living under daily threat, regardless of one's affiliation. I believe that hope for a genuine peaceful resolution and a better life is what sustains people in such circumstances. Yet, between moments of hope, reality intrudes once more, with more innocent victims and shattered families, most of whose stories never reach the international media, which seems to prioritize only large-scale tragedies.
The viola symbolizes such an individual confronting the harsh realities of life. The quartet comprises interconnected sections that depict the brutal fate faced and the resignation to it as a natural aspect of existence. It portrays emotional turbulence, instability, conflict, lamentation, detachment, hope, disillusionment, farewell, and the cyclical nature of destiny, moving on to claim the next victim.
Throughout the quartet, there are several short thematic fragments and motifs that recur in various iterations to evoke heightened emotional responses toward the conclusion. Some of these motifs draw from the half scale of the Arabic “Maqam Hijaz” and snippets of Jewish music, which, ironically, share both auditory and historical connections. Despite the charged subject matter, I have chosen to temper the emotional expression, maintaining a somewhat restrained demeanor throughout, punctuated only by occasional bursts of emotion, as if the audience were observing the events from a removed, filtered perspective.
String Quartet No. 2 – “Hope Cycles” was composed for the Borromeo String Quartet, commissioned by The Serge Koussevitzky Music Foundation at the Library of Congress, and is dedicated to the memory of Serge and Natalie Koussevitzky.
Score of Hope Cycles for string quartet
Additional Key String Quartets Reflecting War, Conflict, and Hope
1. Dmitri Shostakovich – String Quartet No. 8 in C minor, Op. 110 (1960)
Composed as a poignant memorial to the victims of war and oppression, this quartet is widely regarded as one of the most emotionally charged musical statements against conflict in the 20th century.
2. Béla Bartók – String Quartet No. 4, Sz. 91 (1928)
Bartók’s fourth quartet contains dark, intense passages that reflect the growing political unrest and violence of the interwar period.
3. Benjamin Britten – String Quartet No. 2 in C major, Op. 36 (1945)
Written during World War II, Britten’s second quartet weaves themes of hope and sorrow, incorporating folk influences as a symbol of cultural endurance.
4. Arnold Schoenberg – String Quartet No. 2 in F-sharp minor, Op. 10 (1908)
While earlier than WWII, Schoenberg’s quartet is notable for its unsettling mood and the inclusion of a soprano voice, foreshadowing the turmoil that would engulf Europe.
5. György Ligeti – String Quartet No. 1, Métamorphoses nocturnes (1953–54)
Ligeti’s quartet captures a haunting atmosphere shaped by the composer’s experience under totalitarian regimes.
6. Walter Piston – String Quartet No. 3 (1962)
A work reflecting mid-20th century American perspectives on conflict and resilience, blending neoclassical clarity with expressive depth.
7. Elliott Carter – String Quartet No. 2 (1959)
A complex, rhythmically intricate quartet embodying tension and release, resonating with Cold War anxieties.
8. Luigi Dallapiccola – String Quartet No. 3, Il prigioniero (1954)
Inspired by his opposition to fascism, this quartet is a somber and gripping meditation on imprisonment and freedom.
9. Philip Glass – String Quartet No. 3, Mishima (1985)
Commissioned as a reflection on the ritual suicide of the Japanese writer Mishima, this work contemplates honor, conflict, and cultural identity.
10. Alfred Schnittke – String Quartet No. 3 (1983)
Schnittke’s quartet uses polystylism to explore trauma and the fractured human psyche in the late Soviet era.
11. Krzysztof Penderecki – String Quartet No. 2, ‘Métamorphosen’ (1995)
Penderecki’s music often confronts war and memory; this quartet is a powerful example of postmodern reflection on suffering.
12. Caroline Shaw – Entr’acte (2011)
Though contemporary and more abstract, Shaw’s work subtly evokes themes of interruption and transformation that resonate with conflict narratives.
13. Sofia Gubaidulina – String Quartet No. 4 (1986)
Spiritual and intense, this quartet reflects Gubaidulina’s grappling with existential struggles amid the Cold War.
14. George Crumb – Black Angels (String Quartet No. 1) (1970)
An iconic anti-war statement from the Vietnam era, using extended techniques to evoke chaos, anguish, and hope.
15. Joan Tower – String Quartet No. 3 (1991)
Written during the Gulf War era, this quartet blends modern American expression with a sense of urgency and emotional depth.