Name: Distant Voices, New Worlds: Songs, Landscapes and Histories
Price: 14.5 USD
Availability: InStock

Release Date: 15th Nov 2024
Catalogue No: MEX77131
Label: Metier
Length: 78 minutes

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Due for digital release on 15th Nov 2024

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Ed Hughes: In Ieiunio et Fletu (2018)

Work length4:30

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

New Music Players

Ed Hughes: Sky Rhythms (2022)

Work length6:03

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Orchestra of Sound and Light, Rachel Farago and Ed Hughes, Rachel Farago (soloist)
Orchestra of Sound and Light
Ed Hughes

Thompson, S: Mighty Mandela (1990)

Work length8:12

$2.00

$2.60

$3.50

New Music Players

Thompson, S: An Hymn to the Evening (2022)

Work length4:44

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Orchestra of Sound and Light, Rachel Farago and Ed Hughes, Rachel Farago (soloist)
Orchestra of Sound and Light
Ed Hughes

Matthew Sheeran: Languet Anima (2024)

Work length3:12

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

New Music Players

Ficarra: The Arbitrariness of Language (2010)

Work length5:46

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

New Music Players

Ficarra: What Larks (2022)

Work length5:50

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Orchestra of Sound and Light, Rachel Farago and Ed Hughes, Rachel Farago (soloist)
Orchestra of Sound and Light
Ed Hughes

Sutherland, R: Eternal (2018)

Work length6:27

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

New Music Players

Sutherland, R: Modes from the Downs (2022)

Work length8:00

$2.00

$2.60

$3.50

Orchestra of Sound and Light, Rachel Farago and Ed Hughes, Rachel Farago (soloist)
Orchestra of Sound and Light
Ed Hughes

Ed Hughes: Dark Angel (2024)

Work length25:51

Album only

New Music Players
Andrew Gourley

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About

This album presents the world premiere recordings of nine chamber and solo works, showcasing the unique voices of five renowned British composers. The collection is centred on the theme of the English landscape and its cultural heritage, expressed through innovative and compelling music.

“Distant Voices, New Worlds” delves into the dynamic relationship between past and present perspectives on landscape. At its core are four specially commissioned works from 2022 for soprano and ensemble, forming the South Downs Songbook. These pieces explore the human experience of the South Downs, the chalk hills stretching from Winchester to Eastbourne. This project, supported by Arts Council England (ACE) and the South Downs National Park Authority, also included educational initiatives and the development of a composing resource pack in collaboration with the Brighton-based ensemble, Orchestra of Sound and Light, known for its fusion of traditional and contemporary instruments, visual art, and moving images.

The commissioned composers of the South Downs Songbook —Shirley J. Thompson, Rowland Sutherland, Evelyn Ficarra, and Ed Hughes—offer distinct interpretations of the landscape, each drawing inspiration from their own experiences walking the South Downs. These works are set to texts that reflect different historical and cultural viewpoints:

• Shirley J. Thompson set Phillis Wheatley’s poem An Hymn to the Evening (1753–1784), reflecting Wheatley’s time in England.

• Rowland Sutherland selected a poem by Charlotte Turner Smith (1749–1806).

• Ed Hughes adapted words by Marion Robinson (1937), whose writing was influenced by William Blake’s visions of the South Downs skies.

• Evelyn Ficarra set a poem by contemporary Brighton-based poet Valerie Whittington.

In addition to these songs, the album features six other new compositions performed by the New Music Players, offering a broader perspective on British music and its historical context. Notable highlights include:

• An instrumental elaboration on Thomas Tallis’s motet In ieiunio et fletu by Ed Hughes.

• Shirley J. Thompson’s Mighty Mandela, a solo flute tribute to Nelson Mandela, performed by Rowland Sutherland.

• Evelyn Ficarra’s solo piano work, The Arbitrariness of Language, inspired by a haiku.

• Rowland Sutherland’s trio for cello, flute, and piano, which blends jazz influences and incorporates a remix of Tallis’s Lamentations.

• Matthew Sheeran’s Languet Anima, influenced by fourteenth-century Ars Subtilior music.

• Ed Hughes’ tone poem for an ensemble of five, Dark Angel, inspired by William Blake’s engravings for Milton’s Paradise Lost. Blake transposes Milton’s world to the land and skyscapes of the South Downs, where Blake lived for several years.

Supported by contributions from the Hinrichsen Foundation and the Vaughan Williams Trust, this project highlights the intersection of contemporary music, landscape, culture, and memory. The album emphasises the role of diverse artistic voices in promoting public engagement with the environment and fostering well-being.

Coming soon. Distant Voices, New Worlds: Songs, Landscapes and Histories

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