EIGHT
Simon Haw
Saxophone Solo: Gillian Blair
Eight was written for the contemporary Ballet stage; Exactly eight minutes in length, Eight has a minimalist dynamic, which draws the listener into a distant sound-scape, evolving and developing into a serene narrative.
EARTH DANCE
A Commonwealth Cantata in Six Parts
Simon Haw
Dedicated to HM The Queen, Head of the Commonwealth
The Commonwealth Youth Orchestra and Choir commissioned Earth Dance in 2017, to mark the occasion of the Biennial Meeting of the 53 Commonwealth Heads of Government in April 2018. The six movements of Earth Dance characteristically represent each of the six continents of the Commonwealth: Africa, Americas, Asia, Caribbean, Europe and Pacific. All six movements also seek to convey the values and aspirations of the Commonwealth and as such are entitled: Engage, Unity, Respect, Diversity, Renew and Empower.
I ENGAGE
'You must be the change you wish to see in the world.'
Mahatma Gandhi
II UNITY
'Now this is the law of the jungle, as old and as true as the sky,
And the wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the wolf that shall break it must die.
As the creeper that girdles the tree trunk, the law runneth forward and back;
For the strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the pack.'
Rudyard Kipling
III RESPECT
'He that is thy friend indeed, He will help thee in thy need:
If thou sorrow, he will weep; If thou wake, he cannot sleep:
Thus of every grief in heart, He with thee doth bear a part.
These are certain signs to know, Faithful friend from flattering foe.'
William Shakespeare
IV DIVERSITY
(Instrumental)
V RENEW
'As wave is driven by wave, And each, pursued, pursues the wave ahead,
So time flies on and follows, flies and follows,
Always, for ever and new. What was before
Is left behind; what never was is now;
And every passing moment is renewed.'
Ovid
VI EMPOWER
'Find your voice, Share your voice,
With your voice, Have a voice.
Join with one voice, Say with one voice,
Sing as one voice, Shout with one voice.
All resounding, Say together,
Speak together, Work together, Share together,
All together Sing! Sing!'
Haw/Shebe
PASSCHENDAELE
Simon Haw
Written as a tribute to the brave men who gave their lives in 1917 at the eponymous battle, one of the bloodiest conflicts of the First World War.
TRUMPET CALL
Simon Haw
Trumpet Solo: Ralph Brill
Trumpet Call was written in January 2018 and dedicated to Perry Mason. The piece, set for solo Trumpet, hints at a ‘call to Service’. The composition builds to a magnificent climax, reminiscent of the stature and unwavering resolve to duty that Perry Mason became so well respected for. The final strains of the piece lament the passing of a great man. Trumpet Call was premiered by Alan Hughes, principal trumpet of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, at Cadogan Hall London on the 23 April 2018.