Fine had
another opportunity to write for strings when bassist
Betram Turetzky came to Bennington in
1964….Turetzky was eager to play new works, and
Fine took the opportunity to write a solo piece. Fine
uses the double bass traditionally, without any extended
techniques. There are no double stops, unusual bowings,
percussive or speech sounds, and only one harmonic.
Instead, she chose to have her piece be a character
study. It begins traditionally with the melodic shapes
and long lines she often uses, but then the emotional
quality changes. markings indicate
“tranquillo,” then a sudden
“espressivo” associated with dynamic
fluctuations from pp to mf happening every two or three
pitches, a long “piu intenso” phrase is
followed by an active “con nobilità”
passage. The closing portion of Melos is
“con slennità” that is transformed into
“misurato” for its final phrase. Turetzky is
such a dramatic performer that one could imagine
appropriate body language associated with Melos
that would add touches of humor that are not foreign to
Fine’s music.
–Heidi Von Gunden,
The Music of Vivian Fine, Scarecrow Press,
1999