The name is absent

116

pitch content of motives and melodies are not changed when motives or melodic lines are
repeated in Larsen’s music. This applies to both the trio and sonata, but what is unique to
these pieces is her employment of various string techniques such as tremolo, double
stops, and trills for restatements of motives. The following examples show both an
original motive and a restatement from later in the movement.

Example 3.5: Repetition of motives using tremolo: Viola Sonata First mvt., mm. 3-4
and mm. 17-18 ⁵⁷

Example 3.6: Repetition of motive using double stops: Black Birds, Red Hills, Fourth
mvt. mm. 17-22 and mm. 23-28^s8

Example 3.7: Repetition of motive using trills: Black Birds, RedHills, Fourth mvt.,
mm. 10-11 and mm. 47-48

Though it shares motivic content and compositional techniques with Black Birds,
Red Hills, the sonata is clearly tailored to the viola in a way the trio (which was not
originally conceived for the viola) does not. Throughout the movements of the Viola
Sonata Larsen continually returns to the open string pitches, and resonant tones of the

⁵⁷ See also Black Birds, RedHills, Mvt. 4, mm. 36-44/73-81, Viola Sonata Mvt. 3, mm.
19-21/ 64-66, and mm. 120-122.

⁵⁸ See also Viola Sonata m. 97/82 (6ths).

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