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The Alexander String Quartet was a truley beautiful performance. The pieces were a lot more traditional than the music we heard at the Chinese Music Festival at Carnegie Hall. While all the pieces were melodious and sweet sounding, a few of the pieces stood out above the rest. As I listened to these pieces being performed, I heard different stories. The second piece began like a lullaby and had soft and soothing sounds. It then turned into something deeper. There was a sense of longing in the music. To me, it sounded as though someone was thinking about a loved one that they missed. The ending, a slow “twinkling” was a beautiful way to end this romantic piece. As the third piece was being performed, I saw a huge ballroom filled with societies finest. I could see the vivid purples, reds, and greens of the gowns that the women wore and the graciousness of the gentlemen as they took the hands of their dance partners. Chivalry was prevalent in this work. The melody took me to a time and place that I have only read about in books or seen in movies. It was a beautiful and inspiring piece. Another of the works that were performed started off scary sounding and seemed to be introducing an evil character. As the music played I saw an evil witch concocting a poisonous potion. Every time she dropped another ingredient into her cauldron the music got louder. The music slowed down, indicating that the witch had finished her potion. Then, the music got a little louder, but was still slow, and I saw this witch holding up a green vial, admiring her work. The music sped up as this witch went to give the potion to her victim. She pours it in the innocent girl’s wine and the music slows down, as the girl is about to drink it. She finally drinks it and the music’s tempo increases exponentially as the witch gets excited that her plan is coming to fruition. The music then becomes very dreary, as the girl falls to the ground. The end of the piece implied mourning, but was simultaneously beautiful. Although these three works stood out the most in my mind, the other pieces were also beautiful and captivating, and I really enjoyed the performance.

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