The Haunting Bough

Par CASKEN JOHN. In spite of having written many works including piano, before composing my new suite of pieces there were only two for solo piano: The Haunting Bough and Pleasure Ground. I decided to incorporate these in a new set of pieces extending the theme of trees and wood (I cut The Haunting Bough into two pieces which frame the suite as the first and last movements; Pleasure Ground is renamed Swinging Bough), and further developing my interest in the poetry, history and appearance of landscape and its features as extra-musical sources. John Casken / Niveau : 5 / Répertoire / Piano

Song cycle for medium voice and piano, based upon the poetry of Ivor Gurney and Leonard Clark. A set of pieces very much in the English lyrical vocal writing tradition of Butterworth, Ireland and, of course, Gurney. ' The Pine Boughs Past Music is a song cycle baseed upon poetry associated with Gloucester and was commissioned to celebrate the eightieth anniversary of the Gloucester Music Society. Having purposefully sought inspiration from a wide array of Gloucester poets, from Henley to Harvey, I finally found inspiration in the poetry of Ivor Gurney, whose work is so saturated with the Gloucestershire landscape. In his poetry I discovered the essential element I needed to bind the cycle together: the eternal backdrop of nature upon which the poet's thoughts are played out. It would have been quite easy to conclude the set with another poem by Ivor Gurney. However, it was to and nbsp - Leonard Clark I turned. The title of his summative poem speaks for itself, 'In Memoriam: Ivor Gurney': a haunting elegy that pays tribute to Gurney's everlasting memory.' and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - and nbsp - - Ian Venables First performed on April 15th 2010, at St Mary-de-Lode, Gloucester, performed by Roderick Williams (Baritone) and Andrew West (Pianist). Commissioned by Christine Talbot-Cooper to celebrate the Gloucester Music Society's eightieth anniversary. / Mélodie/Vocal/Piano (MVP)