Timbre as an Impassioned Argument: Maconchy’s String Quartet No. 10
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Timbre as an Impassioned Argument:
Maconchy’s String Quartet No. 10
Amazing Moments in Timbre | Timbre and Orchestration Writings
by Carter Miller
Published: March 22nd, 2022 | How to cite
In a brief article from 1971, British composer Elizabeth Maconchy (1907–94) stated that the string quartet is “above all best suited to the expression of the kind of music I want to write – music as an impassioned argument” (Mathias 2012, 93). Maconchy’s highly dissonant String Quartet No. 10 (1972) exemplifies this compositional philosophy. Throughout the thirteen-minute work, Maconchy uses various techniques, including articulations, extended techniques, registral differentiation, and rhythmic patterns to construct a timbral dialogue between the quartet’s four autonomous voices. The final seventeen measures of Maconchy’s String Quartet No. 10, which includes four examples of timbral similarities and differences reflecting a broader musical “impassioned argument,” qualifies as a truly amazing moment in timbre.
In measure 305 (see Figure 1), the bottom three voices perform a motive distinguished by its upward glissando. This motive begins with a dense collection of notes (E♭, F♯, A, C, D) which are then transposed by glissandi to repeat as quintuplets an octave above, where the second violin adds a melodic F♮. The timbral elasticity associated with these glissandi, in addition to the motive’s tenuto articulations and rhythmic unison, create a timbral alliance between the bottom three voices and construct one emergent timbral entity.
Above this motive, the first violin performs a distinct double-stop melody with an opening grace note, a higher register, and slower rhythm. This melody modifies two characteristics from the lower timbral entity: a perfect octave leap becomes diminished (E♮ up to E♭, D♭ down to D♮) and a homorhythmic double stop becomes polyphonic. This contrast between the bottom three voices and the distinct first violin constructs a musical argument wherein Maconchy uses the different timbres of this homogenous ensemble in competition with one another.
Figure 1: Measure 305 of Maconchy’s String Quartet No. 10. (Download XML here)
Moments later, at measure 308 (see Figure 2), specific string techniques are once again used to organise the quartet’s voices into timbral groups. After another upward glissando in the bottom three voices into the first beat of measure 308, the second violin drops out of the texture. At this moment, above a double-stop pedal in the cello, the first violin and viola each perform two distinct melodic ideas on their lowest strings, G and C respectively. This marking demands that the first violin play in ninth position and the violist play in fifth. Combined with the increased thickness of the G and C strings, these high positions create a communally darker and scratchier timbre in a much higher register than the bass pedal. Here, Maconchy composes a temporary timbral alliance between the first violin and viola that contrasts with the low cello timbre.
At measure 314 (see Figure 3), yet another timbral alliance is constructed, this time between the two middle voices. As the first violin continues to develop its double-stop idea above and the cello sustains an E2 below, the second violin and viola move in parallel rhythm until the pickup to measure 317. The four pitches of these two instruments overlap as the second violin’s low B♭3 is a minor third lower than the viola’s top D♭4. The shared register and rhythm construct a timbral alliance which occupies the musical space in between the contrasting outer voices.
The final manifestation of timbral conflict through contrast occurs in the quartet’s closing four bars (see Figure 4). In a reference to the quartet’s opening idea, the viola performs a chromatic solo melody within the texture of the other three voices, which play homorhythmic dissonant chords. The viola’s independent melody and use of artificial harmonics dramatically increase its register and create a distinct timbre. In contrast, the cello and both violins form a timbral alliance through their simultaneous use of glissandi, tenuto markings, and dynamics in addition to their identical rhythms.
Maconchy’s use of timbre in order to construct a musical dialogue is featured throughout her other compositions in addition to this excerpt from her tenth quartet. These passages demonstrate how timbre is manipulated to achieve the larger musical goal of creating an “impassioned argument” and constitute a highly convincing and original approach to acoustic timbral composition.
About Elizabeth Maconchy
Elizabeth Violet Maconchy (1907–1994) was an Irish-English composer who wrote nearly 200 compositions during her lifetime. She was a student of Ralph Vaughan Williams at the Royal College of Music in the 1920s and drew inspiration from the continental modernism of Bartók and Janáček. Today, she is most known for her thirteen string quartets, written between the years 1933 and 1985 (Blunnie 2010, 2–5). In addition to her work as a composer, Maconchy was active in several British musical organisations including the Workers’ Music Association (of which she was vice president), the Society for the Promotion of New Music (president), and the Composer’s Guild of Great Britain (first female chair). Maconchy was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 1987 and was the mother of composer Nicola LeFanu, who is still active today (7, ix).
Elizabeth Maconchy 1938 by Howard Coster Transferred from Central Office of Information, 1974, via Wikimedia Commons
References
Blunnie, Ailie. 2010. “Passion and Intellect in the Music of Elizabeth Maconchy DBE (1907–1994).” Master of Literature in Music thesis, National University of Ireland, Maynooth. https://mural.maynoothuniversity.ie/3983/.Maconchy, Elizabeth. 2015. String Quartet No. 10 (1972). Mistry String Quartet. Jonas Stadline Music AB – X5 Music Group. https://open.spotify.com/track/3dGu1rPkbhfjpP7KSaGxFi?si=836da7bb4c2e4430.Mathias, Rhiannon. 2012. Lutyens, Maconchy, Williams and Twentieth-Century British Music: A Blest Trio of Sirens. Burlington, VT: Ashgate.