Strum for String Orchestra (Rev. 2012)

Strum is the culminating result of several versions of a string quintet I composed in 2006. It was originally written for the Providence String Quartet and guests of the Community MusicWorks Players, and was later arranged for string quartet in 2008 with several small revisions. In 2012, the piece underwent its final revisions, including a rewrite of both the introduction and the ending, for the Catalyst Quartet in a performance celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Sphinx Competition.

Originally conceived for a cello quintet formation, the voicing is often spread widely across the ensemble, giving the music an open and expansive sonic quality. In Strum, I employ textural motives—layers of rhythmic or harmonic ostinati that connect to form a bed of sound through which melodies weave in and out. The strumming pizzicato functions both as a textural motive and as the primary rhythmic driving force of the piece.

Drawing on American folk idioms and the spirit of dance and movement, the work unfolds with a kind of narrative that begins in fleeting nostalgia and gradually transforms into ecstatic celebration.

— Jessie Montgomery