Cantilena
(2008) Oboe and string trio
Duration: 10-11'
Commissioned by the London Chamber Music Society to celebrate their move to Kings Place in October 2008

Premiere:  October 5, 2008, Kings Place, London
Nicholas Daniel, Oboe
Members of the Chilingarian Quartet

Publisher:  Novello & Co Ltd

Critical Acclaim:

….Hall One featured two premieres…..and Thea Musgrave's beautifully wrought, autumnal-pastoral Cantilena for string trio and oboe (Nicholas Daniel).
— Financial Times

…The excellent acoustics in Hall One, designed by Arup Associates, could potentially make this the finest venue for chamber music in London…… Nothing showed the sound quality better than the Chilingarian Quartet’s playing of the Heiliger Dankgesang…… Three of the Chilingarians were also joined by the oboist Nicholas Daniel for another highlight, the premiere of Thea Musgrave’s Cantilena, a beautifully shaped work full of lyrical warmth and upwardly aspiring oboe lines.
— John Allison, London Times

Composer's Note:

The work is a short, lyrical piece where an outsider [the oboe] joins the group [a string trio] and adds to their dialogue. At first the newcomer is treated with a mixture of suspicion and agitation, but eventually is made welcome.

The oboe is invited to share the musical theme that has been established which he then proceeds to embellish and adorn. He leads the harmonic changes that result in the theme being heard in many different keys. He then introduces a new theme. The excitement grows and leads to a climax.

A peaceful coda re-establishes the original theme and all ends harmoniously among the integrated quartet.

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