Sculthorpe - String Quartet #11 - String Quartet Parts Faber 0571570194

The living, indigenous musics of Kakadu National Park, in the north of Australia, and of Torres Strait and beyond, have been a part of my musical language since the late 'eighties. The incorporation is particularly evident in this quartet. Furthermore, the second movement is based upon an Aboriginal chant transcribed by a member of the Baudin exploratory expedition in 1802. This is the first such music committed to Western notation. The eleventh string quartet, then, is in two movements. The first, marked Deciso, contains rhythmic patterns found in the indigenous music of the Kakadu area. While both movements employ similar subsidiary the second movement, marked Estatico is dominated by the chant, first stated by the cello.