.jpg "Orchestral - Harrison Birtwistle - British Composer Awards 2012 photo Mark Allan") |
| Harrison Birtwistle collecting the Orchestral award British Composer Awards 2012 photo Mark Allan |
The awards were founded in 2003 and celebrate the music of contemporary British composers, apart from the International Award, the composers must either be British or have been resident in the UK for 5 years, and the works celebrated are those premiered in the UK in the previous year.
Over 300 works were submitted this year, by 200 composers. On the short list, only one composer is represented twice, Gabriel Jackson is represented by Choral Symphony (Choral) and Cantate Domino (Liturgical).
Two nominated composers works were submitted posthumously: Jonathan Harvey and Sir Richard Rodney Bennett. Jonathan Harvey's Cirrus Light (Instrumental Solo or Duo) was one of his last compositions, written from a wheelchair while suffering from Motor Neurone disease, inspired by the changing colours of cirrus clouds in a summer sky. Surprisingly, this is the first time Sir Richard Rodney Bennett has been nominated. Colloquy with God (Choral) is the last work he composed, a setting of a very moving poem by Sir Thomas Browne for four male voices, dedicated to the vocal chamber ensemble New York Polyphony.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, a number of young composers are represented. Raymond Yiu's The London Citizen Exceedingly Injured (Orchestral) is his first major orchestral composition. Benjamin Wallfisch's Chopin's Waterloo (Chamber) was co-commissioned by the Wimbledon Music Festival.
The Olympic legacy features large with three works in the shortlist were written for the Cultural Olympiad: Stephen McNeff's The Chalk Legend (Making Music), a large scale multi-media event inspired by the discovery of a Viking grave in Weymouth; James Redwood's Pass The Torch, An Olympic Symphony (Community or Educational Project), and Oliver Searle's Technophonia (Community or Educational Project).
In the Stage Works category (always one dear to my heart) there is Imago by Orlando Gough (written for Glyndebourne's education arm), The Fire-work Maker's Daughter by David Bruce (written for the Opera Group, see my review) and George Benjamin's wonderful Written on Skin (co-commissioned by Covent Garden, see my review).
The Choral Category in addition to Jackson's Choral Symphony and Bennett's Colloquy with God contains James MacMillan's Since it was the Day of Preparation, so I certainly don't envy the judges there. The Liturgial Category contains Jackson's Cantate Domino, O Oriens by Cecilia MacDowell (a setting of one of the O anthems written for Merton College, and I took part in a performance of the work in December 2012 so can testify to its beauty and effectiveness), and Matthew Martin's I Saw the Lord, written for Daniel Cook and St. David's Cathedral Choir.
The Orchestra Category includes John Pickard's Tenebrae based on the music of Gesualdo, written for the Norrkoping Symphony Orchestra and Martyn Brabbins, and given its UK premiere by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales under Brabbins; Joseph Phibbs' Rivers to the Sea written for the eighteen birthday celebrations of The Anvil and premiered by the Philharmonia Orchestra under Esa-Pekka Salonen. Yiu's The London Citizen Exceedingly Injured was premiered by the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Long Yü at the Barbican.
2013 British Composer Awards Shortlist
Instrumental Solo or Duo
Cirrus Light by Jonathan Harvey
Darkness Visible by George Nicholson
Gigue Machine by Harrison Birtwistle
Chamber
Chopin’s Waterloo by Benjamin Wallfisch
Fletch by Rebecca Saunders
String Quartet No. 4 by Colin Matthews
Vocal
A Pretence of Wit by Edward Nesbit
Electra Mourns by Brian Elias
Flesh and Blood by David Sawer
Choral
Choral Symphony by Gabriel Jackson
Colloquy with God by Richard Rodney Bennett
Since it was the Day of Preparation… by James MacMillan
Wind Band or Brass Band
4 Diversions after Benjamin Britten: Four Centenary Tributes for Brass Band by Simon Dobson,
Gavin Higgins, Paul McGhee, Lucy Pankhurst
Mysteries of the Horizon by Nigel Clarke
Symphony in two movements by Edward Gregson
Orchestral
Rivers to the Sea by Joseph Phibbs
Tenebrae by John Pickard
The London Citizen Exceedingly Injured by Raymond Yiu
Stage Works
Imago by Orlando Gough
The Firework-Maker’s Daughter by David Bruce
Written on Skin by George Benjamin
Liturgical
Cantate Domino by Gabriel Jackson
I saw the Lord by Matthew Martin
O Oriens by Cecilia McDowall
Sonic Art
5 Minute Oscillations of the Sun by Caroline Devine
Dart for Solo Cello, Delays and Digital playback by Tom Williams
No Such Object (Speed of Light) by Ed Baxter and Chris Weaver
Contemporary Jazz Composition
Iris Nonet by Trish Clowes
Lifelines by John Surman
Songs to the North Sky by Tim Garland
Community or Educational Project
Elemental Songs and Dances by Richard Bullen
Pass the Torch, An Olympic Symphony by James Redwood
Technophonia by Oliver Searle
Making Music Award
Dry Stone Walls of Yorkshire by Peter McGarr
Screech by Kerry Andrew
The Chalk Legend by Stephen McNeff
International Award
Symphony No. 8 by Per Nørgård
The Importance of Being Earnest by Gerald Barry
Woven Dreams by Toshio Hosokawa
From 23 - 25 November the shortlisted works will be previewed on BBC Radio 3 and the winning works will be broadcast in Here and Now on Saturday 7 December.
Elsewhere on this blog:
- The Songmen - demonstrating versatility - CD review
- A quartet to watch - the Sacconi Quartet at Temple Church
- Viktoria Mullova plays Bach concertos
- First Look: Les Vepres Siciliennes
- Embarras de richesse - City Foundation Showcase Concert
- Rare and fascinating - Ludwig Thuille: Songs
- Stunning versatiliy - BBC Singers at Milton Court
- Opera onto film - An encounter with film director Ian Russell
- Powerful stuff - Matthias Goerne sings Eisler
- Rosalyn Tureck - A Centenary Tribute
- Good in parts - a second view of ENO's Die Fledermaus
- Home
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