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New orchestral disc receives outstanding reviews
BIS Records’ recent release of John Pickard’s orchestral pieces has received rave reviews both in Europe and the U.S. The Flight of Icarus, Channel Firing and the Trombone Concerto:The Spindle of Necessity with Christian Lindberg as soloist are featured on this first disc of Pickard’s orchestral music
(BIS CD1578).
The Norrköping Symphony Orchestra
is conducted by Martyn Brabbins.
Buy it here
Hear some clips here
Reviews:
BBC Music Magazine
International Record Review
The Times review
The Guardian review
allmusicguide.com
Pizzicato (in German)
Classica-Répertoire - a terrible review! (in French)
Tempo review (with Agamemnon’s Tomb first performance)
The disc was also Editor’s Choice in the June 2008 issue
of Gramophone. Read the review here
Two choral premières
Within two months of each other, two major choral works received their first performances
Agamemnon’s Tomb is a 52 minute oratorio, commissioned by Huddersfield Choral Society and setting part of a poem by Sacheverell Sitwell. It was composed between 2005 and 2007 and its first performance took place on 9 May 2008 in Huddersfield, conducted by Martyn Brabbins.
Read a programme note for Agamemnon’s Tomb
Read a review here
Tempo review here (with BIS CD1578)
Songs of Rain and Sea is a five movement work for children’s choir (or S.S.A adult choir) to words specially written by the Icelandic writer Sigrún Davídsdóttir.It was commissioned to mark the 50th Anniversary of the founding of Finchley Children’s Music Group and received its first performance on 5 July 2008 at St Pancras Church, London, conducted by Grace Rossiter. A version for S.A.T.B. Choir is also planned. The second performance was given by the same performers at the new King’s Place concert hall in London on 15 January 2009.
Orchestral commission and recording plans for 2010
Following the successful release of their all-Pickard orchestral disc, a second disc will be recorded in the spring of 2010 by BIS Records. Once again, the performers will be the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra conducted by Martyn Brabbins. The disc will feature Sea-Change, the Piano Concerto, with Fredrik Ullén as soloist, and a large-scale new work, Tenebrae, commissioned by the orchestra. The new piece will be premièred in March 2010.
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