... onyt agoraf y drws ...

Last updated

"...onyt agoraf y drws..." ("...unless I open the door...") is an orchestral piece lasting approximately 15 minutes by the Welsh composer Guto Puw. It was first performed on 9 August 2007, at the Proms by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, conducted by David Atherton. Puw was resident composer with the orchestra at the time. [1]

Contents

The piece

The composition is based on part of Branwen's story from the Mabinogion , a collection of medieval Welsh tales, in which a group of warriors, lately returned from Ireland, feast in Harlech for seven years with the severed head of their leader, Bendigeidfran, at the head of the table. They then feast in Penfro for eight years in a hall with three doors and only remember the dreadful events that happened in Ireland when the third door opens. [1] [2] The cheerful feasting is represented by a quotation of a Welsh folk tune. [2] Each of the three doors in Penfro was represented by an instrument (trumpet, clarinet, violin) in a box in the Royal Albert Hall. [1] The piece has a mixture of frantic, rhythmical sections and sections of "black-magical stasis". [3] The piece uses novel sound combinations and effects: the opening of the first door is depicted with strumming of piano strings, and the forbidden door opens to the sound of rasping strings and a huge creak in the percussion section. [3] There is then a nightmarish reel from a violinist, representing the memories of Ireland; the violinist at the first performance was positioned at the back of the Royal Albert Hall. [2] [3]

Critical reception

Critics generally responded well to the first performance. The Daily Telegraph 's critic described it as a "succession of vivid tableaux" and "liked the way it mixed pictorialism with broader expressions of mood and emotional states". The Guardian 's critic described it as a "vivid score", saying that the partnership between composer and orchestra was "clearly bearing fruit" and noting the way that Puw used the huge orchestra with restraint. [3] The Times said that Puw had a "knack for drama", "an orchestral ear" and "a winningly flexible technique". However, the critic added that the "spatial games played with the Albert Hall didn't amount to much, and the piece overall lacks weight", whilst commenting that Puw was a composer "well worth noting". [4]

A second performance took place as part of the Swansea Festival in 2008. [2]

Related Research Articles

The BBC Symphony Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. Founded in 1930, it was the first permanent salaried orchestra in London, and is the only one of the city's five major symphony orchestras not to be self-governing. The BBC SO is the principal broadcast orchestra of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BBC Proms</span> Classical concerts in London, UK

The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in central London. The Proms were founded in 1895, and are now organised and broadcast by the BBC. Each season consists of concerts in the Royal Albert Hall, chamber music concerts at Cadogan Hall, additional Proms in the Park events across the UK on the Last Night of the Proms, and associated educational and children's events. The season is a significant event in British culture and in classical music. Czech conductor Jiří Bělohlávek described the Proms as "the world's largest and most democratic musical festival".

<i>Capriccio Espagnol</i>

Capriccio espagnol, Op. 34, is the common Western title for a five movement orchestral suite, based on Spanish folk melodies, composed by the Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov in 1887. It received its premiere on 31 October 1887, in St. Petersburg, performed by the Imperial Orchestra conducted by the composer. Rimsky-Korsakov originally intended to write the work for a solo violin with orchestra, but later decided that a purely orchestral work would do better justice to the lively melodies. The Russian title is Каприччио на испанские темы.

<i>Adagio for Strings</i> Musical composition by Samuel Barber

Adagio for Strings is a work by Samuel Barber, arguably his best known, arranged for string orchestra from the second movement of his String Quartet, Op. 11.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BBC National Orchestra of Wales</span>

The BBC National Orchestra of Wales is a Welsh symphony orchestra and one of the BBC's five professional radio orchestras. The BBC NOW is the only professional symphony orchestra organisation in Wales, occupying a dual role as both a broadcasting orchestra and national orchestra. The BBC NOW has its administrative base in Cardiff, at the BBC Hoddinott Hall on the site of the Wales Millennium Centre, since January 2009.

The Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 78, was completed by Camille Saint-Saëns in 1886 at what was probably the artistic peak of his career. It is popularly known as the Organ Symphony, even though it is not a true symphony for organ but simply an orchestral symphony where two sections out of four use the pipe organ. The composer inscribed it as: Symphonie No. 3 "avec orgue".

A London Symphony is the second symphony composed by Ralph Vaughan Williams. The work is sometimes referred to as Symphony No. 2, though the composer did not designate that name for the work. First performed in 1914, the original score of this four-movement symphony was lost and subsequently reconstructed. Vaughan Williams continued revisions of the work into its final definitive form, which was published in 1936.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain</span>

The National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain (NYO-GB) is the national youth orchestra of the United Kingdom, consisting of 164 members of ages 13 to 19 years. Their mission is to "give thrilling experiences of orchestral music to teenage musicians and audiences who need them most." Auditions take place in the autumn each year at various locations in the country. The minimum standard needed to audition is ABRSM / Trinity Guildhall / London College of Music Grade 8 Distinction, though it is not necessary to have taken any examinations. In 2011, the orchestra was shortlisted for the Royal Philharmonic Society's Best Ensemble Award. In 2012, the NYO received the Queen's Medal for Music. In 2015 the NYO received the Royal Philharmonic Society's Ensemble award, which recognized particularly the launch of NYO Inspire as well as their other work.

<i>Ein Heldenleben</i> Symphonic poem by Richard Strauss

Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40, is a tone poem by Richard Strauss. The work was completed in 1898. It was his eighth work in the genre, and exceeded any of its predecessors in its orchestral demands. Generally agreed to be autobiographical in nature despite contradictory statements on the matter by the composer, the work contains more than thirty quotations from Strauss's earlier works, including Also sprach Zarathustra, Till Eulenspiegel, Don Quixote, Don Juan, and Death and Transfiguration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nishat Khan</span> Musical artist

Nishat Khan is an Indian sitar player from an illustrious musical family and the foremost sitar virtuoso of his generation. As a composer and music producer he has collaborated with some of the world's leading musicians such as Paco Peña, John McLaughlin, Philip Glass and Evelyn Glennie. His sitar concerto "Gate of the Moon" premiered with the BBC National Orchestra for the Proms at Royal Albert Hall in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guto Puw</span> British composer (born 1971)

Guto Pryderi Puw is a Welsh composer, university lecturer and conductor. He is considered to be one of the most prominent Welsh composers of his generation and a key figure in current Welsh music. Puw's music has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and been featured on television programmes for the BBC and S4C. He has twice been awarded the Composer's Medal at the National Eisteddfod.

Richard Ayres is a British composer and music teacher.

<i>The Rio Grande</i> (Lambert)

The Rio Grande is a secular cantata by English composer Constant Lambert. Written in 1927, it achieved instant and long-lasting popularity on its appearance on the concert stage in 1929. It is an example of symphonic jazz, not unlike the style of George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, although it is very much Lambert's individual conception. It combines jazzy syncopation with lithe Latin American dance rhythms that create an air of haunting nostalgia. The Rio Grande takes roughly 15 to 20 minutes to perform. It was dedicated to Angus Morrison, who played at its first (broadcast) performance.

Benjamin Britten's Piano Concerto, Op. 13, is the composer's sole piano concerto.

Worldes Blis is a motet for orchestra by the British composer Peter Maxwell Davies. It was first performed at The Proms on 28 August 1969 by the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by the composer.

The Symphonia: sum fluxae pretium spei is an orchestral triptych by the American composer Elliott Carter. Its three movements were composed between 1993 and 1995. The complete work was first performed on April 25, 1998 at Bridgewater Hall, Manchester by the BBC Symphony Orchestra under the conductor Oliver Knussen. The second movement "Adagio tenebroso" was a finalist for the 1996 Pulitzer Prize for Music.

Totentanz is a composition for baritone, mezzo-soprano, and orchestra by the British composer Thomas Adès. The work was commissioned by Robin Boyle in memory of the composer Witold Lutosławski and of his wife Danuta. Its world premiere was given in the Royal Albert Hall during The Proms on July 17, 2013 and was performed by the baritone Simon Keenlyside, the mezzo-soprano Christianne Stotijn, and the BBC Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Adès.

Two Episodes is a composition for orchestra by the Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg. The work was commissioned by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, for which Lindberg is composer-in-residence, and co-commissioned by The Proms, the Helsinki Festival, and the Casa da Música. It was first performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Vladimir Jurowski in the Royal Albert Hall, London, on July 24, 2016.

A European Requiem is a composition for countertenor, baritone, mixed chorus, and orchestra by the Scottish composer James MacMillan. The work was commissioned by the Oregon Bach Festival, partially supported by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. It was first performed by the countertenor Christopher Ainslie, the baritone Morgan Smith, the Berwick Chorus of the Oregon Bach Festival, and the Oregon Bach Festival Orchestra under the direction of Matthew Halls on 2 July 2016, at the Hult Center for the Performing Arts in Eugene, Oregon.

References

  1. 1 2 3 BBC Proms Guide 2007 ISBN   978-1-84607-256-7
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Orchestral piece to be performed at the London Proms". University of Wales, Bangor. 30 July 2007. Retrieved 15 August 2007.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Jeal, Erica (11 August 2007). "Prom 36 BBCNOW/Atherton". The Guardian . Retrieved 14 August 2007.
  4. ↑ Brown, Geoff (13 August 2007). "Proms: BBCNOW/Atherton". The Times . London. Retrieved 14 August 2007.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.