King of Prussia, PA — Elkan-Vogel, Inc. is proud to announce the publication of a new string quartet by Peter Schickele, well-known for his irreverent and humorous alter-ego, P.D.Q. Bach. Passacaglia in C minus: A Quodlibet for String Quartet (164-00271 • $18.95). The Latin term quodlibet may be translated as “whatever you please,” but in the musical world it has come to mean a work in which themes from different pieces, often by different composers, are combined in ways not originally intended. Passacaglia in C minus maintains the clever wit of a P.D.Q. Bach piece, while remaining short and relatively easy, for the developing string quartet. It is a playful collage of known themes, containing more than two dozen melodies by Brahms, Bach, Haydn and the like. The work’s namesake, Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Passacaglia in C minor” for organ is woven throughout the entire piece. Perfect for encores, Schickele’s Passacaglia in C minus will be a welcome addition to the string quartet library, which has not seen a new piece from him in quite some time.

Composer, musician, author, satirist -- Peter Schickele is internationally recognized as one of the most versatile artists in the field of music. His works, now well in excess of 100 for symphony orchestras, choral groups, chamber ensembles, voice, movies and television, have given him "a leading role in the ever-more-prominent school of American composers who unselfconsciously blend all levels of American music" (John Rockwell, The New York Times).

In his well-known other role as perpetrator of the oeuvre of the now classic P.D.Q. Bach, Peter Schickele is acknowledged as one of the great satirists of the 20th century. In testimony, Vanguard has released 11 albums of the fabled genius's works; six have been released by Telarc. Random House has published eleven editions of The Definitive Biography of P.D.Q. Bach (which has also been translated into German, and is available as an audio book from the HighBridge Company); Theodore Presser Company has printed innumerable scores; and VideoArts International has produced a cassette of P.D.Q. Bach's only full-length opera, The Abduction of Figaro.

Theodore Presser Company is a full-range music publisher and distributes the music of over 30 publishers from around the globe, with a combined sales catalog that features over 60,000 available works. For more information about new publications from Theodore Presser Company or to locate a dealer near you, log on to www.presser.com or e-mail us at sales@presser.com. For a review copy of the publication listed in this release, please contact Heidi Vanderlee at (212) 777-0900, ext. 230 or send an e-mail to hvanderlee@presser.com.