STRING QUARTET No.2 ＂Floating Particles＂（2025）

The concept underlying my String Quartet No. 2 ‘Floating Particles’ is essentially the same as that of my first quartet ‘Floating Phase’ but is realised differently in the two works. The tone colour of stringed instruments, even with long notes, is highly variable, affected by factors such as the angle and position in which the bow comes into contact with the strings and the amount of pressure applied. In my string quartets I have attempted to confront the question of what in the most basic sense a musical conception inspired by the way in which sounds are produced on stringed instruments actually entails. My first quartet was commissioned by Biwako Hall. Its overall conception involves a slow, gradual evolution away from allusion to Mount Hiei in Shiga Prefecture, while in String Quartet No. 2 I have focused on flux in the micro world of particles. This involves recourse to aggregates of single sounds relayed into space rather than melodic expression, for example. Throughout the piece intricate single sounds turn into motifs and themes, ending up being scattered into space.