The Four Elements
The concept of four classical elements — Earth, Air, Fire, Water — as the foundation for the physical world was shared across ancient cultures, including those in Greece, Egypt, Persia, Babylonia, India, and beyond. In parallel, the unique musical ecosystem of the string quartet is a balance of four equal and living elements, collectively capable of giving voice to the vast beauties and mysteries of our world as well as the highly destructive forces which, taken together, represent the single greatest challenge of our time.
In their latest project, Brooklyn Rider has assembled a novel program anchored by four works symbolically representing earth, air, fire, water. All created (or collected) within the last century of accelerated and unprecedented planetary change, Brooklyn Rider has additionally asked four brilliant composers* to write new works that reflect current realities and serve as a musical call to action.
Earth: Suite of American Folk Songs collected by Ruth Crawford Seeger, arranged by Colin Jacobsen
Air: Dutilleux - Ainsi la nuit
Fire: Shostakovich - String Quartet # 8
Water: Osvaldo Golijov - Tenebrae
*Commissions TBA
Composers & Collaborators
From upper left: Akshaya Avril Tucker, Conrad Tao, Dan Trueman & Andreia Pinto-Correia