Koheleth
- Instrumentation
- Cello
- Composed
- 2020
- Duration
- 8'
- Publisher
- YL Edition (composer's own imprint)
Purchase or download
About this piece
Koheleth is an eight-minute suite in five short movements for solo cello, composed in November 2020 as Yuriy Leonovich's first work after a ten-year break from composing. Named after the Hebrew title of Ecclesiastes, it is a companion to his Solomon: each movement reflects one of the book's teachings, with vanity as a burst of under a minute, the wind as a sul ponticello study in harmonics, a minimalist four-chord movement, the Jewish chant V'ahavta, and a closing setting of Psalm 139. The composer also publishes versions for four cellos and for cello with string quartet or string orchestra.
Technical overview
Calls for thumb position on the A string in treble clef, natural and false harmonics (bowed and plucked), sul ponticello throughout the second movement, accented triple-stop chords at fff and frequent meter changes. Each movement is short, but the colour effects and fast chromatic passages need a secure left hand.
Technical focus
- Thumb Position
- Harmonics
- Pizzicato
- Double Stops
- Shifting
- Meter Changes
- Tempo Changes
- Dynamics
- Hairpin Dynamics
- String Crossings
- Accidentals
- Articulation
- Slurs