Despite successes like broadcasts and a publication by Novello, Center's breakthrough never came, partly due to his shyness and the Scottish establishment's focus on international music.
Composer Biography
Ronald Center (1913-73) was a self-taught composer from Scotland who spent his life in Aberdeen and Huntly, largely cut off from Scotland's cultural heartlands.
Composer Biography
Center collaborated with Polish soldiers Kazimierz Łydziński (cellist) and Witold Nowacki (violinist) during World War II, composing works for them and giving charity recitals.
Performer Biography
The Fejes Quartet, formed in 2006, consists of musicians who first met as members of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and are known for lively performances.
Recording & Production
This album is the first recording to bring together all three of Ronald Center's string quartets, which have previously only been performed separately or incompletely.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Center's music combines eastern European influences, possibly from radio broadcasts and his piano teacher Julian Rosetti, with traditional Scottish sounds.
Compositional Technique
Center's string quartets are characterized by the use of canon, repeated quavers, frantic rhythmic permutations, folk-dancing recollections, open fifths and fourths, and dramatic contrasts.
