Flame and Shadow (2019)
17 minutes
for Soprano, Violin, Clarinet and Piano
Text taken from Flame and Shadow by Sara Teasdale.
1. What do I Care
2. Stars
3. O Beauty (from 'August Moonrise')
4. I Have Loved
Commissioned by Plexus Ensemble.
First performance by Greta Bradman (Soprano) with Plexus (Monica Curro, Violin, Philip Arkinstall, Clarinet, and Stefan Cassomenos, Piano) at the inaugural Women in Music Festival, Melbourne, on May 9th 2019.
Also available in an arrangement for Soprano and Piano, and a lower setting suitable for Mezzo Soprano.
Beyond the various arrangements, two versions of this work exist- the original, where the four songs are connected musically and performed as a single work (approx. 17 mins) and a 'song cycle' edition where the four songs are separated to facilitate performance individually. Please contact me if you would like further information.
17 minutes
for Soprano, Violin, Clarinet and Piano
Text taken from Flame and Shadow by Sara Teasdale.
1. What do I Care
2. Stars
3. O Beauty (from 'August Moonrise')
4. I Have Loved
Commissioned by Plexus Ensemble.
First performance by Greta Bradman (Soprano) with Plexus (Monica Curro, Violin, Philip Arkinstall, Clarinet, and Stefan Cassomenos, Piano) at the inaugural Women in Music Festival, Melbourne, on May 9th 2019.
Also available in an arrangement for Soprano and Piano, and a lower setting suitable for Mezzo Soprano.
Beyond the various arrangements, two versions of this work exist- the original, where the four songs are connected musically and performed as a single work (approx. 17 mins) and a 'song cycle' edition where the four songs are separated to facilitate performance individually. Please contact me if you would like further information.
Full work with Piano (live at Elder Hall, Adelaide)
'Stars' with Violin, Clarinet and Piano Ensemble (live at Coriole Music Festival)
As is always the case when I write for voice, Flame and Shadow began with the text. In this instance, I found myself returning to the sublime and lyrical words of American poet Sara Teasdale, selecting four poems (three complete, one extract) from her fifth collection of poetry, Flame and Shadow (1920).
The words I selected speak of beauty, of true knowledge of self, and of the somewhat enigmatic and curious process of creating- in particular, how what you create connects to and is a part of who you are.
The resultant work is like a song cycle, with each individual ‘song’ developing its own musical material. All four sections are sprinkled with flickers of light and harmonic warmth, heard alongside more subdued and hazy moments. The harmonic language of the work relies heavily upon intervals of 4ths and 5ths, and it was my intention to juxtapose passages of ‘closed’ sound against that of ‘open’ sound, as the note sets created by the perfect intervals contract and expand according to what I perceive as the direction of the text.
Due to the quick ‘birthing’ time of this work, I can reflect now upon its creation and see myself relying heavily upon my favoured musical gestures and idioms. It was fascinating- and quite confronting- to feel myself battling against some of these natural instincts at times, wondering if the music was saying all it needed to say within passages that stayed close to my tried-and-true musical language. In the end- and I recognise this will not be the way for every artist- this work called me to honour the sound worlds I love, and to largely trust my instincts when pulling all the notes together. Given the ineffable pull I felt towards setting these texts for this project, it seems to be the best way for the music to speak the essence of Sara’s words, for it is my heart that makes my songs, not I.
© Anne Cawrse, February 2019
The words I selected speak of beauty, of true knowledge of self, and of the somewhat enigmatic and curious process of creating- in particular, how what you create connects to and is a part of who you are.
The resultant work is like a song cycle, with each individual ‘song’ developing its own musical material. All four sections are sprinkled with flickers of light and harmonic warmth, heard alongside more subdued and hazy moments. The harmonic language of the work relies heavily upon intervals of 4ths and 5ths, and it was my intention to juxtapose passages of ‘closed’ sound against that of ‘open’ sound, as the note sets created by the perfect intervals contract and expand according to what I perceive as the direction of the text.
Due to the quick ‘birthing’ time of this work, I can reflect now upon its creation and see myself relying heavily upon my favoured musical gestures and idioms. It was fascinating- and quite confronting- to feel myself battling against some of these natural instincts at times, wondering if the music was saying all it needed to say within passages that stayed close to my tried-and-true musical language. In the end- and I recognise this will not be the way for every artist- this work called me to honour the sound worlds I love, and to largely trust my instincts when pulling all the notes together. Given the ineffable pull I felt towards setting these texts for this project, it seems to be the best way for the music to speak the essence of Sara’s words, for it is my heart that makes my songs, not I.
© Anne Cawrse, February 2019
REVIEW
"Two new works added considerable interest to this festival. The first was Anne Cawrse’s song cycle Flame and Shadow, a work of floating lyricism and truly beguiling beauty... (this composer is) amongst Australia’s most exciting new crop of musical voices."
~ Graham Strahle, for In Daily
Coriole Music Festival Review, 2021
~ Graham Strahle, for In Daily
Coriole Music Festival Review, 2021