Notes and Editorial Reviews
The presence of the great Marilyn Horne and the late Henry Lewis on this CD is a special treat. Songs of Flowers, Bells and Death: Contextures IV was commissioned by the Barlow Endowment of Music Composition at Brigham Young University. The premiere took place on March 8, 1994, with Ron Brough conducting the Brigham Young Concert Choir and Percussion Ensemble. The meaning of the work is best expressed in its text which embraces approximately 2600 years of sadness and anger. Silent Boughs "To Jackie" was written in 1963. This song cycle for mezzo soprano and string orchestra on poems of Edna St. Vincent Millay was commissioned by Marilyn Horne and Henry Lewis. It received its first performance on November 15, 1963 in Stockholm, Sweden with
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the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. Contextures II is based on nearly three thousand years of anti-war poetry, from Homer to Fanta Bass (1930-1944). A line of oscillating major seconds hovering over a static harmony and funereal bell sounds conclude Contextures: Riots Decade '60, and overlap into the opening of Contextures II. The major seconds refer to the opening of the African-American spiritual We Shall Overcome, so closely associated with Martin Luther King and the civil rights movement. Read less
Works on This Recording
1.
Contextures IV "Songs of Flowers, Bells and Death" by William Kraft
Conductor:
Alastair Willis
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Shepherd School Percussion Ensemble,
Shepherd Singers
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1991/1999; USA
2.
Silent Boughs by William Kraft
Performer:
Marilyn Horne (Mezzo Soprano)
Conductor:
Henry Lewis
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1963; USA
3.
Contextures II "The Final Beast" by William Kraft
Performer:
Andrew Busher (Tenor),
Sarah Eyden (Soprano)
Conductor:
Odaline de la Martinez
Orchestra/Ensemble:
New London Children's Choir,
Lontano
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1985/1986; USA
Sound Samples
Songs of Flowers, Bells and Death
Contextures II: the Final Beast
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