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the more traditional Italian markings.54 The manner in which Larsen “rehabilitates” the
form or structure of the individual movements is more complex and will be addressed in
the individual analysis of each movement.
A second unconscious or unintended coincidence in the construction of the sonata
is its connection to BlackBirds, RedHills. It is not uncommon to find similar motives
appearing in various pieces by Larsen, especially in works from the same time period.
For example, two pieces from 2008, Over, Easy, a quartet for violin, viola, cello, and
piano and Quartet: She Wrote, a string quartet, have extended similar or even exact
passages like the excerpts in Example 3.2, taken from the opening of the last movement
of Quartet: She Wrote and the beginning of the first movement of Over, Easy.
Several of Larsen’s works from this time period use similar titles.