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Signum Quartett

A Dark Flaring - Works for String Quartet from SA

ECM
Release Date: June 13, 2025

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1 Komeng  
2 rage against the  
3 Five Elegies for String Quartet - Molto lento, assai espressivo con tristezza  
4 Allegro feroce  
5 Adagio. Senza tempo e parlante  
6 Allegretto, poco scherzando ed amabile  
7 Allegro, appassionato e sempre in tempo giusto  
8 Iinyembezi  
9 Glimpses of a half-forgotten future - Rhythmic  
10 Brilliant  
11 Tender but still  
12 Allegro molto serioso  
13 Vivace leggiero grazioso  
14 Andante tranquillo  
15 Presto spiritoso  
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A Dark Flaring marks the Signum Quartett’s return to ECM’s New Series after debuting for the label with striking performances on Erkki-Sven Tüür’s acclaimed chamber music recording Lost Prayers (2020). Here, the quartet has put together a unique programme dedicated to South African composers, born in the 20th century, whose works for string quartet are united by the way they blend respect for the past with an instinct for the future in a wide-flung idiomatic scope. The grid of references unravelled between the six composers here – their dates of birth span from 1903 to 1983 – is as geographically wide as it is idiomatically deep, with large musical bridges connecting inspirations ranging from South African Xhosa and Zulu traditions through the late Renaissance to 19th century Romanticism as well as 20th century impressionists and minimalists. There’s even a nod to popular culture, as Matthijs van Dijk’s (rage) rage against the borrows inspiration for its title from the rock group Rage Against The Machine.

The complicated historical and in the same breath cultural backdrop that goes hand in hand with musical repertory composed over this specific period, in the South African context, is not only impossible to ignore but moreover serves as catalyst, canvas and disrupter – sometimes all at once – for most of the music presented here. The country after all didn’t become united until 1910, when South Africa was declared a self-governed country under the Commonwealth in the aftermath of the Anglo-Boer Wars. Apartheid ensued following the World Wars – racist segregational policies that lasted until 1990 and continue to be worked through, digested and dealt with today. 

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