The album title, "What Remains," is taken from Joey Roukens' String Quartet No. 4, and reflects the music's character of harking back to a previous era.
Composition History
Olivier Messiaen's "Oraison," featured on this album, was originally titled "L'Eau" and written in 1937 as part of a suite for six ondes Martenot, an early electronic instrument.
Compositional Technique
Steve Reich's "Different Trains" uses recorded speech fragments, transcribing their pitches and rhythms for the string quartet to literally imitate these speech melodies.
Composition History
Joey Roukens' String Quartet No. 4, "What Remains," was commissioned by the String Quartet Biennale Amsterdam specifically for the Dudok Quartet Amsterdam.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Steve Reich, a composer featured on this album, believes that every innovation in music history means something is also lost, citing the pure melody of Gregorian chant as an example.
Interpretation
For this album, the Dudok Quartet Amsterdam recorded all 16 individual string parts for Steve Reich's "Different Trains," rather than using the pre-recorded tape provided by the Kronos Quartet.
Compositional Technique
Joey Roukens, the composer of "What Remains," purposefully reduced melodic and motivic elements during writing until only texture remained, featuring pulsing triads, melting harmonies, or obsessive single notes.
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