When strings sing: composing for the Matangi Quartet

Amid a year of lockdowns, uncertainty and instability, the Academy of Music in Arnhem felt compelled to ensure that the historic Matangi project could still proceed as close to normal as possible. A good move, according to Chris: 'Because it is a challenging, but highly rewarding project. For many students, the project is seen as a ‘rite of passage’ from the first year into the second, and therefore demands only the very best level of composition from all involved. Besides the scoring of the notes for the quartet to play, composers are also tasked with recording their pieces and producing a well-mixed sound in the studio after their recording session.' Chris continues: 'Naturally, when presented with such a unique and special opportunity like the Matangi Project, composers often seek to explore the capabilities of string quartet writing. With such talented performers, the compositional possibilities are almost endless. Should the composer approach the string quartet in the traditional manner of Mozart, or Mendelssohn, or in a whole new manner altogether?' Chris explains: 'This experimentation and exploration of ideas often leads to many discarded drafts, multiple revisions and exciting ventures into previously unfamiliar styles. The result, however - after lots of hard work and many cycles of self-refinement - is often a superb composition.'

Natalie Roeder

One of the composers Chris spoke with is Natalie Roeder, a composer from Ukraine who now lives in Germany: 'Having played the violin and piano frequently during her childhood, Natalie was excited at the prospect of composing for a professional string quartet. This excitement clearly bled into her composition, entitled Charlie, which is a wonderfully enchanting piece with a funny, humorous character. Inspired by the work of Charlie Chaplin, who she has loved since her childhood, Natalie felt compelled to try and transpose his cheeky personality into a work of her own. As she explains: 'I’ve always written serious compositions and haven’t tried to include humour in my music before. My main idea was to create a piece that transmits fun, easiness and lightness, without sounding cheap or primitive.' Natalie, whose favourite composers rank among the musical legends of J.S. Bach, Beethoven and Chopin, said 'the piece I wrote for Matangi differs from all the music I’ve written before'. But writing Charlie was a tricky and time-consuming process. 'It wasn’t as easy I thought it would be', she said. 'I re-wrote my piece four times before I was satisfied with the overall result'.'

Leon Eisenbach

Another composer who experienced multiple re-writes was Leon Eisenbach. Leon is a 23-year old pianist who began composing at the age of 17. Chris: 'Leon explained he used the process of continuous refinement as a creative stimulus for developing his composition. 'Discarding your work at first feels quite nerve-wracking, but after a while I could sense that this process was improving my skills and bettering my compositions', Leon said. His composition for the Matangi project maps his first expedition into the world of impressionism. Written with traceable influences of Debussy, Ravel and even Bartok, his work Don’t Paint the Devil on the Wall explores the possibilities of employing less-conventional musical materials within his compositions, such as whole-tone scales and ambiguous tonalities. Written whilst he was residing in London, amid a harsh national lockdown, Leon was especially pleased to see his work be ‘brought to life’ and attend the recording of his composition in person. 'It was a magical experience to hear my work performed by the Matangi Quartet', said Leon: 'It was undoubtedly one of the best things to happen in my musical life'.'

Claudius Heilgendorff

'Whilst many composers choose to use the Matangi project as a doorway into a new genre or method of composition, some composers choose instead to split their composition into multiple styles', Chris says. This was certainly true of 20-year old Claudius Heilgendorff from Frankfurt, Germany. Claudius began his musical education at the age of 7 by learning piano and guitar. 'Being from a popular music background, Claudius said that the 2016 film La La Land opened his ears to a new world of musical possibilities, and this sparked his love of music for film. He wanted to use the Matangi project to gain experience and insight into writing within the older musical styles. Claudius said: 'The Matangi Project was a really great learning experience, and it was amazing to work with Matangi. Whilst there was a lot of pressure, as they are such a good quartet, this pressure helped ensure that we brought our very best compositions to the recording session'.'

Tim Woköck

Last but not least, Chris spoke with Tim Woköck: 'His composition for Matangi, Evolution, appears to mirror the development of Western music in three separate eras, which are fused into one piece. 'I wanted to write a serious piece for Matangi, but also something which was slightly experimental and out of my comfort zone', explained Tim. As someone who has a particular interest in funk, jazz and rock music, the Matangi project encouraged Tim to transcend his previous compositional boundaries and push himself into new genres. Tim, also 20 years old and from Germany, is a multi-instrumentalist and plays a wide variety of instruments including piano, guitar, bass, drums, and trumpet. He began composing at the age of 12, firstly using loop pedals before gaining confidence and skills in writing larger pieces of music. Tim thoroughly enjoyed his experience of the Matangi project: 'After many lockdowns and restrictions, it was brilliant to be able to work with my classmates in person on this project; it really felt like the whole Composition for Film Online department came together as one team. The Matangi Quartet were super-friendly and very helpful when playing our pieces; it was great to work with them'.' 

Chris conludes: 'After a year of very challenging conditions for students and staff alike, it was such a relief to hear that the entire Matangi recordings ran smoothly and yielded some excellent results. Despite the very best attempts and technological advancements in online learning and electronic composing, there can be no true substitute for the real-life experience. This is especially true when composing music. As Tim put in his own words: 'The Matangi project reminded me of a fundamental rule of composition: everything sounds way, way better in real life!'.'

The Matangi Quartet recorded in ArtEZ Arnhem’s Concert Hall on Tuesday 18th & Wednesday 19th May 2021. For more information about the Matangi Quartet, please see their website.