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Owen Underhill leapt at the idea of having Quatuor Bozzini record his Second String Quartet, written after a chance encounter with John Cage in 1986 and later revised in 2017. The Bozzini had previously recorded his Trombone Quintet with soloist Jeremy Berkman. Embarking on this new project Underhill took the opportunity to compose music for the quartet based on the poetry of Henry Vaughan and Sir Walter Raleigh (The Retreat and What is Our Life respectively), with countertenor Daniel Cabenas and Berkman playing the sackbut (an early trombone dating from the era of the poems). 

Northern Line – Angel Station String Quartet No.2, was penned after witnessing a performance by the Merce Cunningham Dance Company with live music by Cage. Underhill says “The final movement is a quodlibet which includes four quotations from Cage’s String Quartet in Four Parts (1949-50), an amazing piece and an important work in Quatuor Bozzini’s repertoire and discography.” String Quartet No.5 – Land and Water from 2017 is also in four movements which “etch out connections to the natural world, specific locations and personal experiences,” according to the composer.

The larger works The Retreat and String Quartet No.2 are outstanding. And What is Our Life and String Quartet No.5 are among Underhill’s most sophisticated. These are stellar works, giant steps by a fine composer who is surely on to even bigger challenges and outcomes in a burgeoning catalogue. Owen Underhill: Songs and Quartets, showcasing a more lyrical side of the Bozzini Quartet, will certainly make Underhill a more sought-after composer and these performers much more in demand.

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