Score
Joel ompson
In Response to the Madness for string quartet
4 May 2021
PROGRAM NOTE I only made one rule for myself: each time before sitting down to compose this piece, I had to ingest all the major news stories of the day. e result of this experiment in compositional process is a stream-of-consciousness response to the political mayhem, the massacres, the climate, and our seemingly futile attempts at trying to make things better. It is essentially a scream into the void — or perhaps into the mirror. What does this music do for all the chaos in the world? is craft to which I have dedicated my life cannot directly cool the planet, save lives, or reinstate civility and understanding into our government and society. e piece is merely a response to the madness — one to which I hope listeners can relate — but I also hope it gives voice to our current angst and perhaps inspires us to change our tune. With Love, Joel ompson March 2019
Commissioned by the Grant Park Music Festival Carlos Kalmar; Artistic Director and Principal Conductor
Duration: ca. 6 minutes
Commissioned by the Grant Park Music Festival Carlos Kalmar; Artistic Director and Principal Conductor
In Response to the Madness for string quartet Joel ompson Furious, unrelenting
Violin 1
Viola
Violoncello
sub.
© 2021 by Blackmaninoff Publishing. All Rights Reserved
As before, business as usual
10
With hope
sub.
sub.
5
sub.
Violin 2
(2019)
= 108
4 May 2021
In Response to the Madness
4 14
3+2
20
17
In Response to the Madness
24
5
As before
pizz.
With hope
32
27
In Response to the Madness
6
III
40
II
arco 37 pizz.
arco
pizz.
41
arco
45
In Response to the Madness
50
0
0
0
0
0
57
0
53
7
0
59
sub.
sub.
sub.
sub.
In Response to the Madness
8
60
63
66
molto
sub.
sub.
sub.
molto
In Response to the Madness
9
70
sub.
sub.
sub. sub.
73
Chaos!
76
dim.
dim.
dim.
dim.
autando
autando
pizz.
In Response to the Madness
10
79
arco autando
82 ord.
ord.
ord.
Full of despair, painfully slow = 36–40 con sord.
rit.
86
90 IV
III
con sord.
(III)
92
In Response to the Madness
con sord.
97
senza sord.
104
senza sord.
senza sord.
* if possible
senza sord.
Focused = 112
IV
con sord.
11
sub.
In Response to the Madness
12
107
113
110
vigorously
In Response to the Madness
116
13
119
++
2 2 3
molto
sub.
122
molto
In Response to the Madness
14
125
molto
molto
molto
129
molto
132
IV
IV
molto
molto
molto
molto
non trem.
II
non trem.
III
In Response to the Madness rall.
136
With hope…
= 72
138 Scream into the void = 120
molto
molto
molto
139
molto
15
142
molto rall.