Sonnet XX for Solo Cello Ursula Kwong-Brown March 2014
PERFORMANCE NOTES The title references Neruda’s Sonnet 20 – his volume Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair (1924) is full of beautiful phrases that inspired many of the melodic motifs. ! Duration:!approx.!6’30”!
Scordatura
Explanation of Sounding/ Fingered Notation Throughout the score, the top stave shows the sounding pitch. When the de-tuned strings (II and IV) are used, the fingered pitch is shown below. For visual contrast, the fingered pitches are colored pink for sul II and blue for sul IV. ! ! Accidentals!hold!throughout!the!measure.!Courtesy!accidentals!are!frequently!provided. All!tremolo!markings!are!unmeasured.!! ! Start!all!glissandi-immediately!at!the!beginning!of!the!note!value.! ! Molto!vibrato.!Wide!vibrato!within!a!semitone!of!the!notated!pitch.! ! ! ! Pizzicato!! Always!let!vibrate!as!long!as!possible.! ! !" LeftHhand!pizzicato-!
#!
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Snap!pizzicato.!Pluck!the!string!so!that!it!snaps!against!the!wood!of! the!fingerboard!(aka,!“Bartok”!pizz.)!
Bow techniques col-legno-battuto! S.P.!
sul-ponticelloM.S.P.! molto-sul-ponticello-! ! N.!! normale-–-used!with!S.P.!and!M.S.P.! ! ! Bow!directly!on!the!bridge.!!Pitch!is!almost!entirely!replaced!by!the! on!the!bridge! sound!of!bow!hair!on!wood.! Gradual!and!continuous!transition!(e.g.,!from!N.!to!M.S.P.)! ! ! ! Increase!bow!pressure!into!scratch!tone.!
If there is any confusion about the notation, please contact the composer! Ursula Kwong-Brown <ursulakb@berkeley.edu> (617) 461-9474