Jalbert, Pierre: Air in Motion

for flute and string quartet

Air in Motion, for flute and string quartet, is in four contrasting movements. The first movement is a short, fast, rhythmic prelude where the strings and flute echo each other’s changing rhythmic pulse (like mini metric modulations that turn on a dime). The second movement is a canon on 50 notes (in honor of Carol’s 50th anniversary season). The canon begins as a repeating ascending pattern which gradually changes over time. The same canon appears later in slow motion and in different guises throughout the piece. The third movement is an air, almost chant-like, with slowly evolving resonances and frozen time. The fourth movement is pulse-oriented, with rhythmic and imitative motives passed between strings and flute, with slower interruptive events that always lead back to the rhythmic energy of the Opening. Pierre Jalbert