Inner Demons

Description

Violin 1, Violin 2, Viola, Violoncello, Contrabass — Inner Demons depicts a man as he loses his mind. This piece contains four themes: a tarantella, a demented waltz, a scherzo, and the Appalachian folk hymn "The Wayfaring Stranger." The themes are stated quite briskly until arriving at the hymn. This theme consumes the man; it destroys his mind and he melts down. As his mind is slowly rebuilt, his thoughts become increasingly chaotic, until elements of all four themes are heard simultaneously. Inner Demons is an arrangement of the third and second movements (in this order) of my String Quartet No. 2: Demons and Angels. -S.G.