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Ray Twomey  

String Quartet (Opus 11b)

Duration: 18' 00" Year: 1997
for string quartet

  • Programme Note

    This work is the string quartet version of Sinfonia, opus 11a, and is a musical autobiography. Ray was born in England and lived through seven years of destruction, spending many nights in air raid shelters listening to the sounds of total war. An air raid, with its sirens, the drone of bombers, bombs dropping and anti-aircraft fire can be heard in the first movement. The main theme, which occurs soon after the opening, reappears inverted after the air raid – symbolic of the utter chaos prevalent at that time. However, like the Phoenix rising from the ashes, the theme not only corrects itself but changes from minor to major modality near the end. The second movement represents New Zealand with its bitter-sweet memories for the composer. New Zealand is a beautiful country. The humorous third movement, called “England again” is scored pizzicato throughout, and leads to the final movement “Canada” – big Canada, magnificent Canada, vast Canada, noble Canada, free Canada, beautiful Canada…. the huge but simple harmonies near the end are Ray’s interpretation of the optimism he feels for the country.

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Anthony Ritchie  

The Eagle has Landed

Duration: 15' 00" Year: 1996
chamber opera

  • Instrumentation
    two baritones, tenor, soprano, mezzo soprano; string quartet and piano
  • Programme Note

    Based on the 1969 moon landing and Jules Verne’s novel From the Earth to the Moon the premiere of this short opera was described in The Listener by Alan Wells as an “unclouded crowd-pleaser.” He went on to say, “Stuart Hoar’s libretto for this entertaining romp brought together Apollo astronauts and moon-stranded fictional characters from Jules Verne, while Ritchie’s tuneful score gleefully quoted Tchaikovsky and patriotic Americana to underline (and undermine) the action.”

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