infotext:
This CD of works by British composer David Gorton is about music from the 17th century, not in the sense of history, but rather as a journey: a personal exploration of the music of that period. Rather than playing it, Gorton "plays with" this music, as he puts it. His works are neither pure editing nor pure composition, but are somewhere in between. The original sources are always present, but are transformed into something unfamiliar. It is almost ideal that all performers on these recordings are well versed in dealing with both new and old music.
David Gorton lives in London, where he was awarded the Royal Philharmonic Society's Composition Prize. He has written large-scale works for the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the London Sinfonietta, the Ensemble Exposé and CHROMA, among others. His compositional projects are stylistically diverse, ranging from explorations of microtonality to musical games and open forms, programmatic portraits of the landscapes of East Anglia, or adaptations of 16th and 17th century material. David Gorton studied composition with Harrison Birtwistle and Simon Bainbridge at Durham University, King's College London and the Royal Academy of Music. He has taught at the Royal Academy of Music since 2006 and is a professor at the University of London. His music is published by Verlag Neue Musik in Berlin.
program:
Concerto for flauto a becco e violino by Torelli
for recorder solo, violin solo and string orchestra (2018) 21:12
[01] I. Largo - Presto - Largo 08:30
[02] II. Adagio 07:22
[03] III. Allegro - Adagio - Allegro - Adagio - Allegro 05:20
Olwen Foulkes, recorder
Peter Sheppard Skærved, violin / conductor
Longbow
[04] Farnabye's Mask for piano (2016) 08:09
Daniel Ben Pienaar, piano
For some friends (after Matthew Locke) for violin and piano (2020) 13:31
[05] a. Pavan (Quiet: the towne grows very sickly, and people to be afraid of it) 04:36
[06] b. Courante 00:46
[07] c. Saraband 00:42
[08] i.e. Fantazie (Slow and quiet: the streets very empty, and most shops shut) 03:20
[09] e. Courante 00:59
[10] f. Saraband 00:53
[11] g. Jigg - Conclude thus, with head akeing with too much thoughts 02:15
Peter Sheppard Skærved, violin
Daniel Ben Pienaar, piano
Consort Set in Five Parts (after William Lawes)
for broken consort with obbligato continuo (2019) 22:34
[12] I. Fantasy: a.5. for ye Violls (Lawes arr. Gorton) 04:21
[13] II. Aire (Gorton after Lawes) 07:08
[14] III. Fantasy: a.5. (Lawes arr. Gorton) 03:11
[15] IV. Paven (Gorton after Lawes) 05:48
[16] V. Aire: a.5. (Lawes arr. Gorton) 02:06
Stefan Östersjö, eleven-string alto guitar
Longbow
Total playing time: 65:38
Longbow
[01-03]
Violins: Alice Barron, Nazrin Rashidova, Salome Rateau, Tanya Sweiry
Viola: Daniel Shilladay
Cello: Valerie Welbanks
Double bass: Rachel Meerloo
[12-16]
Violin / Conductor: Peter Sheppard Skærved
Alto recorder / tenor recorder: Olwen Foulkes
Viola: Diana Mathews
Bass viol: Harry Buckoke
Cello: Evie Littlefair
first recordings