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Rhona Clarke - Sempiternam

Choral music has always been a constant thread throughout the compositional development of Rhona Clarke (b. 1958). The works on this album range over a thirty year period and demonstrate the increasing individuality of her work, though rooted in the choral tradition of Ireland and Britain. Her chamber and instrumental works, in contrast, can reach out in far more extreme modernist styles. From the darkness of Ave Atque Vale to the sheer breathtaking beauty of Pie Jesu or Lullay, my Liking, Clarke shows herself here to be among the most effective, inspired and communicative choral composers of today. The album contains sacred works; from her Requiem which concentrates on the message of redemption and omits the judgemental sections, to Marian Anthems and three Christmas Carols; and also secular songs of love, loss and black comedy.

The Latvian State Choir is the leading professional choir in the Baltic States, and is in high demand internationally having worked recently with the Concertgebouw and London Philharmonic Orchestras (among many) and has recorded for Naxos, Harmonia Mundi, Warner and other top labels. This is the choir’s debut album for Métier.

This is a program of the most wonderful choral music of today, which will have wide appeal.

€ 12.30

Malachy Robinson: the Irish double bass

"The 2020 Covid19 pandemic coincided with my reaching the age of fifty,  and so a universal period of reflection and re-evaluation was heightened by this mid-life milestone.  In the absence of concerts, the risk for a performing musician was of falling into despondency, leaving one’s instrument aside because there was no point in practising.  Some of my friends went that way.  But I felt that I had to fight the melancholy for fear of being overcome by it, and it resulted in a deeply rewarding period with my bass.  I had the time to engage with Joesph Groococks' Sonata at last, and after a couple of months had decided how best to adapt it to the larger instrument. I then revisited a number of Irish solo pieces that had particularly resonated with me – and which explored different facets of the bass – and with the support of the Sligo International Chamber Music Festival I contacted Deirdre Gribbin for something brand new to round it off.  A successful funding application led to the recording of this album in March 2021, with the remarkable Laoise O’Brien producing, the unflappable Ben Rawlins engineering, and the brilliant Gary Beecher on piano.  What fun we had!

This album, then, is three things: a personal retrospective, a look at a diverse set of composers from Ireland through the medium of my instrument, and a celebration of what you can do with a double bass.  From the traditional craftsmanship of the Sonata to the gay abandon of Bodhrán; from 1985 to 2021; from the very bottom to the tippytop; from me to you, with gratitude for the privilege of a life in music. "

Malachy Robinson

€ 12.30
new music::new Ireland one cover

new music::new Ireland one

This CD, the first in a new promotional series, presents 11 works by a range of Irish composers performed by a diverse range of international and Irish performers. Funded by Culture Ireland, the series aims to showcase the current work of Irish composers, taking the listener on a journey into the vibrant world of new Irish music.

€ 0.00

Refleksija

Trio Violina Anime
Tracks include:
Ian Wilson 1927 for three violins
Ian Wilson Sonata for solo violin

€ 12.00

Ordnance Survey: Relative Phase

€ 7.00

Panopticon

€ 12.00

Same as it ever was?

A unique Tallaght University Hospital (TUH) and Community Arts project supported by the Meath Foundation has resulted in a unique CD. “Same as it ever was?” showcases the music and poetry resulting from a scheme inspired by Reminiscence Therapy that was run in schools in Tallaght and Cashel in conjunction with the hospital

The project explored the potential of sharing musical experiences between students and their grandparents to enhance intergenerational communication, understanding, and knowledge, and project co-leader, composer Ian Wilson, produced a musical composition that reflects the commonality and differences of those musical choices and the themes that arose from them. Late last year the generations involved in the project were brought together in Mount Seskin Community School Tallaght and Cashel Community School Tipperary. The CD contains five songs by Ian Wilson, settings of poems by Helen Pizzey which were a direct response to the outcomes of the project.

€ 4.99
Fairlight Memories cover

Fairlight Memories

The music on these CDs was composed on a Fairlight Computer Music Instrument between 1983 and 1988. The Fairlight was among the first synthesisers controlled by a computer and Roger Doyle 'made great use out of it' and has 'very fond memories of the Fairlight'. Works include Contents of the Pay-Jar and a suite derived from the music composed for The Love of Don Perlimplin and Belissa in the Garden.

€ 19.31
New Music for Orchestra (1998) cover

New Music for Orchestra (1998)

C. S. L. Parker

C. S. L. Parker's Selfish Minds written for John Conroy's short film of the same name is performed by the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra, conductor Jiri Mikula, with works by five other contemporary composers.

€ 19.31
New Music for Orchestra (1998) cover

New Music for Orchestra (1998)

C. S. L. Parker

This CD features C. S. L. Parker's programmatic work Lumen: The Walk to Poolbeg Lighthouse performed by the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra, with works by six other contemporary composers.

€ 19.31

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