New Work from Gerald Barry for the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group
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Oxford Spring 2008 musicnow31 New work from Gerald Barry for the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group Gerald Barry discusses Beethoven—a BCMG Sound Investment commission. The work is a setting of Beethoven’s letter to his ‘Immortal Beloved’ and was premiered on 16 March at the CBSO Centre in Birmingham. BCMG was conducted on the occasion by Thomas Adès, with Stephen Richardson as the bass soloist. Having worked with BCMG on Wiener Blut and Dead March, your relation- ship with the group spans back some years. What difference does it make when you know the ensemble you are composing for so well? Knowing BCMG over such a long period makes an enormous difference. I feel at home/at one with them and there’s no pressure at all when writing. I was really glad Photo: Anthony Hobbs to have the opportunity to set the Beethoven letter for this—to work with a large first met Gerald in the spring of ensemble of 15 players and with the singer Stephen Richardson and conductor 1990, during the rehearsals and Tom Adès, both of whom I trust completely. To work with these people and the Ipreparations for the premiere of musicians is a fantastic thing. You’re functioning at the highest level. Stephen has an The Intelligence Park. I was literally extraordinary passion and presence, and an innate sense of things. bowled over by his music. Not only What is it about the letter The Immortal Beloved that inspired you to write because of its seeming complexity and Beethoven? technical difficulty—requiring no less Apart from being amusing, the Beethoven letter is dramatic, cinematic, and poign- than virtuosity from all performers, ant. The woman (Antonie Brentano) represented Beethoven’s last chance to forge a singers and players alike—but for its relationship and, for whatever reason, he withdrew from it. That was a serious blow originality and accessibility. Here was a and precipitated a crisis and breakdown. It was emotionally disastrous for him. After living composer with a really personal this he never mentioned the hope of such a thing again. style, a presence like no other. I felt privileged to be involved. After that ChristophER CALVErt, Project Assistant, BCMG season at the Almeida, I was invited to sing the role of ‘Time’ in Gerald’s opera ‘This must be the oddest love letter ever written, with its passionate avowals The Triumph of Beauty and Deceit. Here of love, mixed with covert fending-off of the beloved, and pointless news again was a piece that if it was a vinyl about travel conditions in Austria. It has a desperate and at times absurd record on a turntable, and you dropped pathos, which Barry’s setting wonderfully caught – much helped by the the needle anywhere on it for just five vividly tragic-comic performance of the bass Stephen Richardson.’ seconds, it would be immediately IVAN HEWETT, The Telegraph recognisable as Gerald’s music. Such is ‘Entitled simply Beethoven, and setting his anguished letters to Antonie his style and musical gesture. word for word in the Emily Anderson translation, its initial aura of Unmistakeable. slightly manic patter embodied Goethe’s description of the composer STEPHEN RICHARDSON as “an utterly untamed personality”.’ RIAN EVANS, The Guardian Contents ❙ Page 2 Gabriel Erkoreka ❙ Page 3 Gabriel Jackson and Bob Chilcott ❙ Page 4 Michael Finnissy ❙ Page 5 Howard Skempton ❙ Page 6 Anthony Powers and Hilary Tann ❙ Page 7 Mack Wilberg and John Rutter ❙ Page 8 Martin Butler ❙ Page 9 Richard Causton ❙ Page 10 Living Music ❙ Page 11 Alan Rawsthorne ❙ Page 12 Michael Berkeley ❙ Page 13 Ralph Vaughan Williams and Proms performances ❙ Page 14 CD round-up ❙ Page 15 New titles ❙ Page 16 Contact details www.oup.com/uk/music 2 OxfordMusicNow Erkoreka’s Jukal at the 2007 ISCM World Music Days in Hong Kong Gabriel Erkoreka’s Jukal, a Guitar Jukal was the only piece representing ‘It was a formidable experience Concerto based on Flamenco Music, Spain at the 2007 ISCM event. The to hear guitarist Nelleke ter Berg commissioned by the Nieuw Ensemble piece was also performed on a tour by play with such grace the intricate in 2000, was brilliantly performed at the the same players, which included the solo part of Jukal at the City Hall International Society for Contemporary Time of Music Festival in Finland in Hong Kong. The members of Music World Music Days 2007 in Hong and the Huddersfield Contemporary Insomnio played with great inten- Kong by the Dutch group Insomnio Music Festival. It will be performed sity, capturing both the essence and (ISCM Ensemble-in-Residence for again in May in Utrecht, Holland. intention of my piece.’ 2007), conducted by Ulrich Pöhl. The GABRIEL ErkorEKA solo guitarist was the magnificent Nelleke ter Berg. Gabriel Erkoreka: Concerti recordings In July the Orquesta de la Comunidad de Madrid, conducted by José Ramón Encinar, will record all of Gabriel Erkoreka’s concerti to date with four internationally renowned soloists: Afrika, for Marimba and Orchestra; Soloist-Pedro Carneiro Kantak, for Solo Piccolo and Chamber Ensemble; Soloist-Harrie Starreveld Jukal, for Solo Guitar and Chamber Ensemble; Soloist-Pablo Sainz Villegas Akorda, for Accordion and Orchestra; Soloist-Iñaki Alberdi The composition of these four works took place between 1996 and 2004. Folk music is a common influence, both as a reference and as a pretext for experimentation. The recordings will be released on CD in the autumn of 2008 on the Italian label Photo: Nice studios, London Stradivarius: www.stradivarius.it. Gervase de Peyer and the Hallé Orches- Alun Hoddinott tra, conducted by Sir John Barbirolli, 1929–2008 enhanced Hoddinott’s reputation and led to increased performances of his works It is with great sadness that we announce and many new commissions. The night the death of Alun Hoddinott. Alun died before he died, the world premiere of his on 12 March at the age of 78. last string quartet was performed by the As a former Professor of Music at Sacconi String Quartet at the Wigmore University College, Cardiff, and Artistic Hall in London. Director of the Cardiff Festival 1967- In a fitting tribute to a distinguished 1990, Alun Hoddinott had considerable Welsh composer, the BBC National influence in awakening interest in Orchestra of Wales’s new venue at the contemporary music in South Wales. Wales Millenium Centre will be named His breakthrough came in 1954 when Hoddinott Hall when it opens later his Clarinet Concerto was selected for this year. performance at the Cheltenham Festival. The success of the premiere, given by 2 OxfordMusicNow Gabriel Jackson Commission from the John Armitage Memorial Trust 2008 Akin to the large-scale motets of 17th- JAM’s forces and were delighted century Venice, the piece is built from when he accepted our commission. antiphonies of variegated scoring—fan- It is rare to find someone who is so faring trumpets, a hushed choral chant obviously attuned to this unusual over deep organ pedals, dancing chorales combination.’ for the brass, brazen, clanging tuttis, a EDwarD ArmitagE, whooping horn, glistening, coruscat- Chairman, JAM ing organ figuration ... all seeking to JAM tours its annual programme around Photo: Katie Vandyck give vibrant voice to Addison’s celestial, ecstatic vision.’ the UK, visiting venues such as the ca- thedrals of Canterbury and Southwark; abriel Jackson has recently To date, JAM has commissioned works King’s and St John’s College Chapels, completed his major new from Judith Bingham, Jonathan Dove, Cambridge; St Bride’s and St James’s work commisioned by the G Adam Gorb, Timothy Jackson, John Churches, London; St Cuthbert’s John Armitage Memorial Trust (JAM). McCabe, Paul Patterson and, for 2008, Church, Edinburgh. The next sched- JAM was founded in 2000, to encour- Gabriel Jackson. uled performance of this piece is by the age, choir of Selwyn College Cambridge and promote, and perform new music. It Gabriel’s new work was premiered on Onyx Brass on Saturday 5th July at St does this by commissioning a major 10 April 2008 by the BBC Singers, Nicholas’ Church, New Romney. For piece each year (for choir, brass quin- Onyx Brass, and Stephen Disley (organ), further information, please email info@ tet, and organ) to front its annual music conducted by Nicholas Cleobury, at St jamconcert.org. programme, which is predominantly Bride’s Church, Fleet Street. A repeat comprised of submissions. Gabriel was performance by the same ensemble took delighted to be approached: place the following day at Canterbury Cathedral to open the Sounds New Upcoming commissions: ‘I was honoured and excited to be asked Festival and will be broadcast on Radio Gabriel Jackson is currently writing a to write this year’s John Armitage Me- 3 at a later date. Requiem, commissioned by the Vasari morial commission. The text—Joseph Singers. The premiere will be on Addison’s well-loved 18th-century ‘Gabriel was an obvious choice for Remembrance Day, 11 November 2008 ode The Spacious Firmament—is full of JAM, being one of the country’s at St Martin-in-the-Fields. For further vivid imagery which invites the kind of leading choral composers. We felt details visit www.vasarisingers.org. kaleidoscope of textures and colours a that he would work brilliantly with choir, brass quintet, and organ affords. Bob Chilcott at the World Symposium on Choral Music This summer Bob Chilcott will be ‘When the process of rhythm appearing as a workshop leader at the becomes unified within a group 8th World Symposium on Choral Music, it becomes a very empowering to be held at the new Opera House in performance tool. We shall work Copenhagen, Denmark. His session with this idea in what will be a fully ‘Finding Performance Energy Through interactive and energetic workshop’.