Cherise D. Leiter, Composer

A Stitch in Time (2008)

Medium: solo viola

Length: ~10 min

Composed in 2008, A Stitch in Time is a five-movement work with each movement loosely based on different knit stitches. In the first movement (knit 2, purl 2) ascending intervals are assigned to knit stitches and descending intervals to purl stitches. Beginning with minor and major seconds, the intervals are slowly increased up to minor and major ninths and then return to the smaller intervals by the end. The second movement (slip 1, knit 1, pass slipped stitch over) uses a glissando figure to represent the slipped stitch, and an arpeggio figure represents passing the stitch over. In movement three (work a cable stitch) the violist is required to slide the fingers in opposite directions when moving from one double-stop to another. The fourth movement (yarn over needle) is a fast scherzo-like idea, while the last movement (purl 2, knit 2) is an inversion of the first.