Quartet for Strings No.7

Unlike Beethoven, I am not introducing any particularly revolutionary new principles into the history of Western Art Music with this seventh quartet; but I do appear to be entering a possibly middle period, with an expanded technical vocabulary at the structural level that may slightly increase the otherwise unlikely chance some random worthwhile invention may occasionally appear among these notes.

With incredulous humility I must note in passing that the inimitable Béla Viktor János Bartók only managed to produce six string quartets; and that therefore I have now surpassed him in quantity - though by no means in quality - in that form. Mark this down therefore as not merely a major milestone in my life, but as perhaps in retrospect the major milestone I am ever likely to achieve. The string quartet form constitutes the very backbone of my projected life's work and is the absolute last thing I would hope to jettison from my consciousness, if I ever felt my psychic ship going down.

If I'm smart, I'll take a few days off, now, and enjoy the early June weather. We shall see about that, however. :)