 Bach By Arrangement
World Premiere: New Commission by Alexander Goehr
Orchestra of the Swan, Town Hall Birmingham
Tuesday 29 April 2008 at 7.30pm
Orchestra of the Swan carries forth its commitment to commissioning new work with the
world premiere of Broken Lute for solo alto flute, oboe and strings by Alexander Goehr
performed on Tuesday 29 April at Town Hall Birmingham at 7.30pm. This Bach inspired
programme, conducted by David Curtis, featured his Toccata and Fugue in D Minor
arranged by Steve Martland, Copland Nonet and Brandenburg Concerto No 3; a work
which so clearly motivated Stravinsky to create his lively chamber concerto Dumbarton
Oaks which concluded the concert.
"Commissioning and performing new work continues to play a vital role in our work.
Alexander Goehr has long been recognised as one of the most important and distinctive
voices in contemporary music in the UK and we are thrilled to have been able to
commission this new work from him." |
 |
Speaking about his new work Alexander Goehr explained:
“I completed Broken Lute for Orchestra of the Swan in January 2008, having taken my
inspiration for the piece from the Chinese Ming story “The Minister, The Lute, and the
Woodcutter” (in “The Inconsistency of Madam Chung & other stories” from the Chinese
translation by E. B. Howell). Each of the work’s six sections is linked to different
extracted sentences or paragraphs from the text, which begins: ‘Yu Boya, official of the
Chu Dynasty, returns from a mission. He is sick and weary, but the river and mountain
scenery refresh him as his boat moves downstream. A sudden storm raises great
waves and the sailors seek shelter below a cliff.”
David Curtis, Artistic Director, Orchestra of the Swan added:
“Commissioning and performing new work continues to play a vital role in our work.
Alexander Goehr has long been recognised as one of the most important and distinctive
voices in contemporary music in the UK and we are thrilled to have been able to
commission this new work from him.” |
