Lodestones are rocks and minerals which have been naturally magnetized. Intrigued by these fascinating stones, I was inspired to write a piece for violin and piano which considered both instruments to have magnetic charges of their own.

The process of attraction defines much of the opening section, with both instruments frequently colliding with one another and exchanging motivic ideas. Closely intertwined with one another in the more static middle section, the violin and piano soon begin to diverge and demonstrate the influence of repulsion. This separation continues and both instruments eventually fade away into registral extremes, unaffected by the magnetic presence of the other.

Lodestones was performed by Rachael Masterson (violin) and Ciara Moroney (piano) at MTU Cork School of Music in November 2021.