Musical ability has often run in families. Take for example the articles about Bach and his sons which annotate at least 6 generations of Bach professional musicians many forgotten but 40 members of this musical dynasty are still remembered to this very day. Then there was Beethoven the prince of musicians; both his father and grandfather were professional musicians�3generations, and then the incomparable Mozart whose father and sister followed by his 2 sons were all musicians�3 generations. In England a London family the PURCELLS held prominent positions in the music of the Court and that of Westminster Abbey, and took an active part in musical life for 150 years�4 generations. Today people often speak of �Purcell� without realising that although they mean Henry, there was in fact a first generation Henry; but it is the younger Henry who was the most gifted and famous of this musical family.

String players will observe that in this arrangement of this very short piece there are no phrasing or bowing articulations. This is intentional, as this music should try to emulate the sound and articulation of a trumpet. The bow should be used in the middle to upper half with the notes played firmly on the string in a staccato like style. The dynamics are all terraced.

This series of arrangements for string quartet is aimed at string quartets� that are building a repertoire of incidental popular classics and �easy listening� music for social functions of every kind. In preparation also at the time of writing is a collection of the most popular hymns taken from the English Hymnal for string quartet with optional chamber organ. From time to time I shall add further pieces thus building the availability of music that is well known to the general public. String quartets should contact me if they have any particular requests, but here I must stress that strict copyright restrictions may apply for certain commissions.