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CCA Composer of the Month – MARCH 2014
YOUR FEATURED COMPOSITION(S) OF THE MONTH:
Never Look Back (1999) [Click here for recording] kiss & tell (2000) [Click here for recording]
INSTRUMENTAL AND/OR VOCAL RESOURCES USED:
Never Look Back: flute, clarinet, bassoon, harp, guitar, violin, viola, cello, percussion (2)
kiss & tell: flute, clarinet, horn, violin, double bass, piano
kiss & tell [2]: oboe, clarinet, horn, violin, cello, piano
FIRST PERFORMANCE DETAILS – IF RELEVANT:
Never Look Back was first performed at Adrian Boult Hall, Birmingham in June, 2000
kiss & tell was first performed at Adrian Boult Hall, Birmingham in June, 2001
PERFORMERS ON YOUR RECORDING – IF RELEVANT:
Never Look Back: Birmingham Conservatoire Contemporary Music Ensemble
kiss & tell: Birmingham Contemporary Music Group
OF THE WORK(S) YOU HAVE SELECTED FOR THE COMPOSER OF THE MONTH FEATURE, WHAT WAS THE SOURCE/INSPIRATION/COMMISSION WHICH SET THIS PIECE OR THESE PIECES IN MOTION?
Both pieces were composed in order to develop particular elements of my composing technique.
WHAT WOULD BE A GOOD PROGRAMME NOTE FOR THIS WORK (OR THESE WORKS) WHICH EXPLAINS THE STRUCTURE, USE OF MELODY AND HARMONY AND ANY TECHNICAL POINTS RELATED TO THE PERFORMERS?
Both works use a distinctive structure in which a melodic line in the clarinet develops. For the later work: kiss & tell the solo lines are notated unbarred in order to give the performer more freedom to explore their own expressive interpretation. Between the solos are short “tutti” sections which are deliberately designed to create a complex sound in order to represent the impatience of the other performers to express their own interpretational ideas.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST START COMPOSING AND WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST PIECE?
As a teenage cellist in my local youth orchestra, I began to discover how some composers could create amazing orchestral sounds and I wanted to find out how this could be achieved. My first “serious” piece was a string quartet, inspired by Ravel’s String Quartet, the slow movement of which I found captivating.
WHO WAS IT THAT FIRST ENCOURAGED YOU TO DEVELOP YOUR INTEREST IN COMPOSING AND HOW DID THEY HELP?
After leaving school, I attended a music foundation course where I was first introduced to contemporary (twentieth century) music, about which I knew very little. It was not until I gained a place at Huddersfield School of Music that I began to discover more about the skills required to construct a competent composition.
WHO DO YOU CONSIDER YOUR GREATEST INSPIRATIONS IN TERMS OF THE MAJOR COMPOSERS AND WHICH OF THEIR WORKS HAS INFLUENCED YOU THE MOST AND WHY?
I remain inspired by every composer, in every “genre”, who can express themselves in an original way. In this respect, I have been inspired by the work of Luciano Berio for many years. Among many of his works, the anarchic style of Sinfonia was an inspiration to me. My interest in theatrical elements in my compositions was heightened by a performance I witnessed of Peter Maxwell Davies’ Eight Songs for a Mad King.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR STYLE TO SOMEONE WHO HAS NEVER HEARD YOUR MUSIC BEFORE?
My compositions reflect my interest and experience in a wide variety of styles, emphasized by theatricality of performance, a key element in many works.
HOW DO YOU WORK? WHAT METHODS OF CREATIVITY AND WORK ETHIC DO YOU HAVE? DO YOU SOLELY USE MUSICAL TECHNOLOGY OR DO PAPER AND PENCIL STILL FORM A PART OF YOUR PROCESS?
I have some experience with using Sibelius software, which is helpful as a learning tool, but I find that the most direct way to develop my “creative process” is by means of a pencil and paper.
WHAT PROJECTS ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING ON?
Some of the particular theatrical techniques used in A Simple Love Song and Four Lost Songs - settings by four different poets, for tenor, cello and piano, continue to provide me with ideas for my next project. An opera is an attractive proposition, but a more intimate work, such as Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire provides a more practical solution, particularly in terms of performance.
To finish, who or what is your favourite:
Instrumentalist?
Keith Jarrett (piano) [Image 1]
Singer?
Peter Hoare (tenor) [Image 2]
Chamber Ensemble?
Birmingham Contemporary Music Group [Image 3]
Orchestra?
London Sinfonietta [Image 4]
Concert Venue?
Royal Albert Hall [Image 5]
Piece of Music
“Isn’t She Lovely” (Stevie Wonder) [Image 6]
Douglas Seville is Image 7