Night escape, a new work by pianist and composer Paolo Gorini for voice, electronics and piano, provided the impetus for this song program. The theme of Gorini's composition is an introspective look at one's sense of self from the perspective of nature and identification with one's surroundings.
The work is combined with a selection of Benjamin Britten's Folk Songs and Apparition by George Crumb, one of his most powerful and moving works. The words are taken from Walt Whitman's When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd. The poem deals with the overwhelming nature of death and was written as a lament shortly after his assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. An excerpt:
The night, in silence, under many a star;
The ocean shore, and the husky whispering wave, whose voice I know;
And the soul turning to thee, O vast and well-veil'd Death,
And the body gratefully nestling close to thee.
Performers
- Elisabeth Hetherington More about elisabethhetherington.com
- Paolo Gorini More about www.paologorini.com
Program
George Crumb - Apparition
Benjamin Britten - Folk Songs (selection)
Paolo Gorini - Night (e)scape for voice, electronics and piano (world premiere)