String Quartet No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 1 | M. J. Nuttall

This twenty-minute avant-garde behemoth is the first piece I feel ready to share publicly, although my first viola concerto is getting close. It is the culmination of several weeks of continual effort.


I think the thing I like most about this piece is that it is one of the few pieces I have written that is a direct extension of my own feelings. If you're interested, I'll explain the story behind this piece a bit deeper. If not, you can stop reading here.

For my entire life, I was a member of a certain religion, which for a few reasons I will not name- but you may be able to pick out certain motives from hymns in that religion throughout this piece. I began doing research into the true history of this religion, and I realized that it was all made up- none of it was ever true.

For several months, I was left feeling betrayed and lonely because of my childhood. I was angry at my religion, angry at how I had invested so much faith and time into a lie. This piece is the representation of those feelings of betrayal.

This is why the "dies irae" theme is so prevalent in the string quartet. The dies irae Gregorian Chant was a hymn lamenting the judgement of humanity. For a while, i felt scared that I had come to the wrong conclusion about my religion, and was going to that religion's version of hell.

This piece is comprised of four themes- two in d minor, one in Ab Major, and one that is tonally ambiguous (it utilizes a twelve-tone row).