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David Sawer's Mutability Premieres on the Young People's Chorus of New York City's Transient Glory Series

May. 01, 2006

David SawerDavid Sawer's Mutability for a cappella children's chorus was given its premiere by the Young People's Chorus of New York City on April 28, 2006, under the direction of Francisco J. Nunez. About the text of his new work the composer offered:

The poet Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote this short poem in 1821 at the age of twenty-nine, one year before his untimely death. In lines of haunting verse, he conjures up images of happiness only to conclude that neither beauty nor joy are true or lasting, and that, like nature, all things in life are transient and subject to change and mutability.

 

Nunez adds:

Mutability is a very powerful piece. When looking at the music on the page, it looks deceptively simple, but it is extremely challenging with closely clustered harmonies. The tone of the piece is dark with only a hint of hope scattered throughout. However, the choristers are drawn to the realness and depth of the writing and the unusual harmonies and rich texture.

 

David Sawer was born in England in 1961 and studied music at the University of York. He has composed works in all genres. His orchestral works Tiroirs and the greatest happiness principle (a rhythmically joyous concert opener) have been performed by leading ensembles throughout Europe and the US. His Hollywood Extra, written for the Matrix Ensemble to accompany an expressionist silent film, was taken on a Contemporary Music Network Tour by the Asko Ensemble. He has written two operas: the one-act The Panic for the Royal Opera’s Garden Venture, and From Morning to Midnight, a full-length work commissioned by English National Opera, premièred at the London Coliseum in 2001, for which he subsequently received a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Opera.

Transient Glory introduces newly commissioned choral music by the world’s major composers created to celebrate the profoundly transcendent nature of young singing voices. Launched in the year 2000, Transient Glory began as a concert performance series of the Young People’s Chorus of New York City to advance the art of children’s choirs throughout the world.

For more information on David Sawer visit www.universaledition.com. For more informaion on Transient Glory and the Young People's Chorus of New York City visit www.ypc.org.

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