Date: 26 September 2009
Venue: Trackdown Scoring Stage, Moore Park
Presented by the New Music Network & Halcyon
Japanese haiku has been a influential poetic form from the 16th century until the present age of twitter-inspired 'twaiku'. This succinct poetic style responds beautifully to a vocal chamber music setting; each carefully chosen word can inspire fresh musical colours. Halcyon showcases the talents of composers from around the globe, including Roberto Gerhard, Anne Boyd, Elena Firsova, Colin Matthews and Julian Yu, with a selection of contemporary haiku settings for voice and instruments. The performance culminates in the world premiere of a new song cycle by composer, writer and broadcaster Andrew Ford, on poems by Anglo-American poet Anne Stevenson. Willow Songs is a picture of a woman’s life in reverse, from defiant, outrageous maturity to vulnerable girlhood.
PROGRAM
Julian Yu - Four Haiku (1992)
Anne Boyd - 3 songs from Cycle of Love (1981)
Elena Firsova - Seven Haiku after Matsuo Basho Op. 47 (1991) ^
Roberto Gerhard - Sept Haiku (1922/58)
Ton de Leeuw - Song I & III from Haiku: Songs and Interludes for voice and piano (1963)
Colin Matthews - Strugnell’s Haiku (1990)
Andrew Ford - Willow Songs (2009) *
* World premiere ^ Australian premiere
ARTISTS
Mark Shiell conductor Alison Morgan soprano Jenny Duck-Chong mezzo soprano Sally Walker flutes Laura Chislett Jones alto flute Jason Noble clarinets Rie Tamaru oboe Gillian Hansen bassoon John Douglas percussion Stephanie McCallum piano Sally Whitwell piano Steven Meyer cello Joseph Littlefield guitar