MusicString quartet
Call My Bluff
Built on a repeated, worrying figure that keeps being interrupted and picked up again.
At a glance
- Composed
- 2026
- Forces
- Violin I, Violin II, Viola, Violoncello
- Duration
- c. 4′ (draft)
- Status
- In progress
- Score
- Perusal PDF, free to download; parts on request
Listen
Program note
One of a group of string quartets being written to stand together as a set.
The quartet opens quietly, with the outer voices holding while the viola works away underneath at a fast, muttering pizzicato figure. That figure is the argument of the piece: it is passed around, cut off, and taken up again, and the music keeps testing how long it can hold its nerve before something gives.
For performers
What the score asks of the players, read from the engraved parts. The score is a working draft and some details may still change.
- Tempo
- ♩ = 80
- Meter
- 4/4, with passages in 12/8 and 2/4
- Length
- 78 bars (draft)
- This is a draft score and may change before the piece is finished.
- The viola carries a fast, muttering pizzicato figure under held outer voices; the figure is passed around the quartet.
- Sforzando accents are frequent across all four parts.
- Double stops throughout, most of all in the cello.
| Part | Lowest to highest |
|---|---|
| Violin I | G3–B5 |
| Violin II | G3–G5 |
| Viola | C3–E5 |
| Violoncello | C2–F4 |
Score and parts
Downloads
Parts
Individual parts are sent on request. Tell me who is playing and when, and I will send the score and parts ready for rehearsal.
Give Call My Bluff its premiere
This piece is available for its first performance. If your ensemble would like to give it, I would love to hear from you. Or, if you would rather have something new, ask about a commission.
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