Four Inventions, for saxophone quartet, is a work written in one, two, three and four voices. The piece in one voice is composed of a single melody which is passed from one instrument to another. The melodic line is played by two, three or four saxophones, creating a rhythmic articulation based on the differences in timbral densities. The second invention, though only in 2 voices, suggests a harmonic progression which supports a melodic line. The third invention is in a pointillist three- part counterpoint, where each of the four performers plays in the 3- voice texture, exploring the four different trio permutations of the quartet. The last invention starts with a slow 4- voice choral, followed by a series of fast- paced rhythmic hockets based on the same harmonic ideas. The four pieces are all based on the same 12- note thematic material and are subject to only one rule: the pleasure of invention.

Four Inventions was premiered by Quasar at the Claude Champagne Hall of the University of Montreal, in 1994.
Discography : Quasar quatuor de saxophones, ATMA (ALCD 2 1020)