Quartet No. 2 - “Obscure Sorrows”

Instrumentation: 2 violins, viola, violoncello

Duration: ca. 14 minutes

The title of this work, ‘Obscure Sorrows,’ comes from John Koenig’s book The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows. As I started reading the various words that are coined throughout this text, I found an infinite well of ideas and emotions which I quickly had to set to music. A few words specifically drew my attention and became the titles and subjects for the movements of this piece. As such, this piece is in part inspired by, and in part responding to, the words and definitions of this dictionary.

The first word, anemoia, is defined as ‘nostalgia for a time you never experienced.’ Quickly, I saw a variety of scenes in my head; the sights and sounds of old streets and cafes, black and white images. I began to ask myself ‘what does nostalgia for the past, specifically a past you’ve never experienced, sound like to me?’ The result is this first movement.

The second word, klexos, is defined as ‘the art of dwelling on the past.’ I think to the many events in my life that I personally dwell on, which keep me up at night and pile on to a seemingly never- ending list of mortifications. I think to the stories that people have told me of their childhoods, all the various events that made them who they are today. I think to how our society looks back on our past, glorifying that which deserves no glory, harkening back to a supposed golden age. Dwelling on the past can indeed be an art, and we are all masters of it.