KONTRA (2002)

KONTRA features the French horn and the clarinet as soloists over an ensemble of percussion and string quintet. The work opens quietly with veiled tremoli in the tam-tam, which is soon joined by the double bass, the lowest register of the French horn and the cello. Presently, he upper strings enter, starting in the stratosphere and gradually descending over the course of two minutes to join the lower instruments. Against the string backdrop, the horn and the clarinet perform soli over the full gamut of their respective ranges, both in terms of register and in terms of their technique. The upper strings having descended as far as possible, the cello ascends to its highest register and performs its own, wailing recitative, followed by a smaller solo for the viola. The entire ensemble builds to a climax, consisting of rapid, repeated cascades. Against this backdrop, the horn enters with a sustained crescendo on a single pitch.