Charmolypi

Divertimento in F-Major "Charmolypi" for String Quartet - Composer's Note, 2026

Just finished writing a short, minimalist-style divertimento written for string quartet. Subtitled Charmolypi (χαρμολύπη), the name takes its title from the Orthodox concept of sorrowful joy, the deep paradox of grief and gladness existing simultaneously and beautifully.

The piece turns on a single harmonic idea of an oscillation between the tonic and its mediant, a progression that refuses to resolve into either brightness or shadow. Something in the composition seems to act as a mirror, and the listener’s own inner state determines whether the music sounds like a consolation or lament.

The form draws from the Classical divertimento tradition for string quartet while absorbing the language of Philip Glass: spare, repetitive, and unhurried. What results is something that feels, perhaps, older than either influence.

Listen to Charmolypi below: