"Cabatina" was finally finished to input. The maestro's playing instructions were quite detailed and it was difficult to balance each string. In Beethoven's scores we often find the characteristic instruction ‘cresc. + p’. Normally, after cresc., the next volume of note should be stronger, but it suddenly becomes weaker. My friend of a violinist, who has been coaching me during our ensemble practice, advised me that it's crucial to properly express this sudden change in mood.
It is a truly beautiful piece of music, but not merely beautiful—it reveals a breathtaking intensity midway through. This happens at the section marked "beklemmt" (breathless, anxious, oppressive). In this part, the second violin, viola, and cello sustain a semi-legato pattern of sixteenth-note sextuplets and triplets played *pp* (pianissimo), while the first violin sings out as if speaking directly from the depths of the soul amidst the silence.
This "Cabatina" was selected as one of the musics on “The Golden Record" on board two "Voyagers" launched in 1977. I heard that they are still flying, and It seems that they are still continuing their flight, and I suddenly wondered—if an extraterrestrial intelligence were to encounter them one day and hear them, how would it understand their greatness? Incidentally, a list of the music selected from each country and their libraries can be found on NASA's website at "Sounds of Earth".
Music: String Quartet No. 13 in B-flat major, Opus 130, 5. Cavatina.
Sound Source: Sample Modering Solo & Ensemble Strings
Audio file format：mp3（for those who listen directly on a PC)