for any orchestral string instruments (at least 12) (2016)
25′ or more
f.p. Participants of CoMA Summer School, High Melton, Doncaster, 11th August 2016
‘ærc’ is the Old English word for ark, derived from the Latin arca, a chest. Here it denotes an enclosed space, perhaps of refuge or safety, certainly of intimacy. As in the ark of Noah, the players are paired, entering the space of the work two-by-two and creating a dense polyphonic texture (a giant viol consort) from breath-like bow-strokes, each pair in rhythmic unison, before exiting in sequence.