My third set of three etudes for cello choir is a substantial departure from Etudes #1 – 3 and 4 – 6. Written five years after the original six etudes, this set features deeply-developed and stylized musical material created within similar compositional criteria to the originals. Each etude is a true musical miniature that can be performed individually or with the set. Significantly-more-challenging than my previous etudes, these pieces push musicians and ensembles to expand their abilities while expanding the repertoire of music written specifically for cello choirs.

Etudes #7 – 9 feature progressively-challenging individual and ensemble parts. All etudes for cello choir are published only as (two-page) scores to promote ensemble reading and part-switching opportunities (as is standard practice for choral music). These etudes work best for very large groups of cellists (more than two-to-a-part) and can also be played by groups as small as a quartet.

Etude #7 pairs a three-part broken arpeggio with a single melodic part. Each motif trades off between all four parts as the harmoic language evolves. Harmoincs (indicated with diamond noteheads) facilitate a piece with high-register timber that is rare for cello ensemble music. Other than the use of harmonics and tenor clef in two of the parts, Etude #7 is not particularly difficult in its individual parts or the ensemble.

Etude #8 is a study in broken arpeggios for the entire cello choir. Initial repetition eases some of the ensemble difficulty but is quickly broken to challenge musicians further while maintaining musical interest. The result is a delightfully-ephemeral listening experience leveraging the full range of the cello. Individual parts are difficult only in the counting of rests in 5/8 time, and in the tenor-clef-range of the first two parts.

Etude #9 explores a single arpeggiated motif in layered harmonic variations among all four parts. Three parts employ tenor clef with quickly-moving parts in the upper register. The repetition in each part and in the primary motif simplify the execution of this complex piece somewhat, if played with ample use of various thumb positions and fingerings that minimize shifting and string crossing. With relatively-straightforward ensemble difficulty, the complexities of each part drive the advanced overall difficulty of Etude #9.