Four Violas
The Absolute Zero Viola Quartet is a professional ensemble who met and started playing together when they were in the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Really, they are like any string quartet, except they don't have to put up with the violin and cello sounds that string quartets generally suffer from. In fact, they are pure and unalloyed viola times four, and the rich, evocative sound of four expert violists playing in combination is really something very special.
"You have really surpassed yourself. What a great piece of music!" - Ross Cohen on 'Paganini Fireworks'
My first venture with Absolute Zero occurred when Ross Cohen (viola wizard and master composer) offered to arrange one of my piano rags for their use. The arrangement turned out so well that I called it the Absolute Zero Rag which became the title track of their CD album Easier Than it Sounds.
Since then I have written two more pieces for them. Loco Motif is a sort of train journey - not because I think violas sound like trains, but because it just turned out that way. My latest commission for the quartet is Paganini Fireworks - variations on the famous Paganini 24th Caprice theme set in the context of a firework party. Again, this is not because I think violas sound like fireworks, or indeed that they make good firewood (although they do). There are viola jokes pages to deal with that sort of thing although I never visit them....well, hardly ever.
I've included an MP3 of Loco Motif on the Jukebox page - a mere shadow of the real performance, but it gives a good sense of the music.
If you'd like to learn more about the wonderful world of violas, then visit their website and see them in their native habitat. You can also purchase the CD album online and read some jolly funny viola jokes.
"I also particularly enjoyed the Absolute Zero Rag written for them by Geoffrey Walker..." - Baird Knechtel, The Canadian Viola Society