Donnacha Dennehy, Land of Winter
an hour-long orchestral journey that Donnacha Dennehy composed for Alarm Will Sound, and dedicated to Alan Pierson
From the Conductor My collaboration with Donnacha Dennehy is among the deepest and richest of my career. From the day I conducted the very first workshop of Donnacha's “Grá agus Bás” in 2006, I knew that this was an artist making profound, important, original work; that it was music people needed to hear, and that I needed to bring it into the world with as much care as I could. Land of Winter is dedicated to me, and it builds on these decades of our collaboration. But it's also something very new: Donnacha's largest work, an hour-long instrumental tone-poem, shaped by the changing seasons and light across the months of a year, which metaphorically also become the shifting phases of life. I love the grand journey on which it carries the listener. Realizing that journey calls upon so much from the musicians: propulsive energy, rhythmic agility, and great attention to detail. Bringing it to life has taken all of the skills I've developed over my decades of experience on the work of this great composer. |
Article: "Sharing Overtones" - Chris P. Thompson
NOMINATIONSBest Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance Best Contemporary Classical Composition |
CREDITS
composer Donnacha Dennehy
conductor Alan Pierson
performers Alarm Will Sound
recording engineer Daniel Neumann
executive producer Gavin Chuck
producer Adam Abeshouse ❤️
Released by Nonesuch Records
conductor Alan Pierson
performers Alarm Will Sound
recording engineer Daniel Neumann
executive producer Gavin Chuck
producer Adam Abeshouse ❤️
Released by Nonesuch Records
Mary Kouyoumdjian, Adoration
an operatic look at a vulnerable family grappling with grief and racism
From the Music Director There's no greater joy for me than working with artists I love on a new opera. Working at the intersection of music and theater, and helping shape music towards the telling of a story and the creation of a dramatic experience is the most stimulating experience I know— particularly so when the artists are two dear friends, like Mary Kouyoumdjian and Royce Vavrek. Royce has a knack for picking stories that touch on deep topics in ways that bring a sense of mystery and invite curiosity. His treatment of this Atom Egoyan film about the struggles of an adopted half-Palestinian boy to come of age amid a prejudiced community, is among his most mysterious and curious. And Mary's mastery of atmosphere, color, and line makes for the perfect partnership with his story. It's been such a joy to work with this team — director Laine Rettmer, sound designer Daniel Neumann, producer Beth Morrison, and the extraordinary cast — to bring this piece and this album to fruition. |
NOMINATIONBest Opera Recording |
CREDITS
composer Mary Kouyoumdjian
librettist Royce Vavrek
music director Alan Pierson
performed by Silvana Quartet
vocalists Marc Kudisch, David Adam Moore, Omar Najmi,
Naomi Louisa O’Connell, Karim Sulayman,
The Choir of Trinity Wall Street
live sound, recording, album mix Daniel Neumann
producer Mary Kouyoumdjian
executive producer Beth Morrison Projects
adapted from the film by Atom Egoyan
Released by Bright Shiny Things
librettist Royce Vavrek
music director Alan Pierson
performed by Silvana Quartet
vocalists Marc Kudisch, David Adam Moore, Omar Najmi,
Naomi Louisa O’Connell, Karim Sulayman,
The Choir of Trinity Wall Street
live sound, recording, album mix Daniel Neumann
producer Mary Kouyoumdjian
executive producer Beth Morrison Projects
adapted from the film by Atom Egoyan
Released by Bright Shiny Things