Wernick: Sonatina in the Shape of a Pearl

Instrumentation

• Violin
• Violoncello

An outgrowth of Wernick's Sonata for Two (for two cellos), composed for Joel Krosnick and his daughter Gwen, Sonatina in the Shape of a Pearl is a return to more formal neo-baroque procedures. The title comes from the Portuguese word barocco, thought to be the source of the term baroque, and a pejorative term for an irregularly shaped pearl. The first movement is based on a four-note motif that is slowed down, turned around, turned on its head, and played against itself in various guises. The second movement is a miniature passacaglia, played almost exclusively in harmonics. The third movement is the most rhapsodic, picking up elements from the prior two movements and adding a bit of fluff.