I think this quartet offers a masterclass in both achieving an exciting sense of rhythmic drive, honed from her admiration for Bartok, Caribbean influence and previous training as a composer for modern dance, and also in working with commanding economy of material. It is in a concise, single movement but the traditional four movement structure can still be distinguished within it. Alberga develops all the melodic, rhythmic and harmonic material for the piece out of the first few bars and in doing so experiments with syncopation, cross-rhythms, harmonic tension and release, counterpoint, repetition and so on. I also love how she achieves so many contrasts of character and mood without ever disturbing the flow of the piece.