I first met the Acacia Quartet a couple of years back, playing in a show I put together for Sydney Philharmonia Choirs, T he Beatles Unplugged. What a joy to discover a quartet of such expert musicians who are also so open to playing such a wide variety of music, from The Beatles to Brahms! I wrote this piece Winter Love for us to perform together.
Composing a piece for specific performs is, I imagine, something like tailoring a bespoke suit. I wanted to give them something with which they could show off their unique versatility; creating rich, warm, blended sounds one minute and fiery, energetic, even whimsical tones the next. I didnt want to write just a quartet at the time because, perhaps selfishly, I simply wanted to be a part of it!
The title makes it seem like the work is programmatic, but its not. I just couldnt think of a title for it. My partner Glennda came up with that, and I dedicate the piece to her.
-- Sally Whitwell