- Published in 2021, Hailstork’s “Rhapsody for String Quartet” is based on the African American spiritual of the same name. It was commissioned by the Apollo Chamber Players.
- The composer describes the piece in the following way:
- “Deep River represents a slave’s visions of escape, over the river (usually the Ohio). This idea carries with it a sense of energy, of freedom, even joy and the humor they imagine upon deliverance. A sudden interruption by the whip brings them back down to the cruelty and sadness of the situation. Eventually, sadly, they recover, and, quietly embrace again the distant vision they hope to realize someday.”1
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Cut IDs
32325 26389