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• Jagger: A Poet's Requiem; facsimile 

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• Young, K: Beacons of Hope; facsimile 

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• Young, K.: Beacons of Hope; facsimile 

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This tone poem, along with ‘High Valley’, was composed to evoke the Rocky Mountains – as seen from the vantage point of Canmore, Alberta. Far Calling includes parts for mixed voices SATB sung to the sound of ‘Ah’. The works honour Canada’s magnificent beauty and its vast open, unspoiled places – truly a garden of Eden.

• Twomey: Works by Ray Twomey; computer-set 

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• Twomey: Far Calling (Opus 22); computer-set 

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• Twomey: Far Calling (Opus 22); computer-set 

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• Twomey: Far Calling (Opus 22); computer-set 

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• Twomey: Far Calling; computer set 

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• Ray Twomey: The Spirit of the Land 

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• Ray Twomey: Music for Orchestra and Carillon 

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From the Southern Marches was the brain-child of George Griffiths, historian and owner of Otago Heritage Books in Dunedin. He writes: ‘For many years I’d pondered the nature of the southern region and the people who live in it – particularly the contradictory characteristics passed on from our Scots forebears, with their unrelenting capacity for hard work and their uncertain trust in the rewards to be gained from it. In a broader view, it seemed the development of a southern character was a story so rich in human spirit and diversity that it demanded some kind of expression.’ The ‘kind of expression’ depended very much on George’s choice of texts which come from a wide variety of sources, ranging from old Maori chants to more recent poetry.

The work progresses more or less in a chronological manner, but avoids becoming a potted history of the south. Each text from each particular era focuses on a special characteristic of the time – whether it is the reckless optimism of the gold miners in the 1860s, or the grim reality of the needle-workers in the 1880s who were virtual slaves. George has drawn on a rich variety of ideas and texts, so that more serious items are contrasted with humour, as in Thatcher’s The Old Identity or ‘King’ Dick Seddon’s political speech. Some items involve text with existent tunes, and the music becomes an arrangement (as is the case with The Old Identity). Sometimes these tunes are just a starting point for lengthy elaboration, as in Bright Fine Gold, based on the tune for Hot Cross Buns.

From the Southern Marches has a format that is similar to oratorio, with alternations between solo vocal items and choruses, with the addition of two purely orchestral sections. There is even references to the ‘recitative’ style in The Jubilee, Southern Education and elsewhere. It runs to almost two hours in length, and is divided into two halves.

Such was the success of the premiere in March 1998, From the Southern Marches was repeated in December of the same year, this time with Dobbs Franks conducting. In 1998, Otago Heritage Books won a Special Merit Award in the National Business Review’s Business Sponsorship of the Arts Awards .

• Anthony Ritchie: From the Southern Marches; computer set 

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• Anthony Ritchie: From the Southern Marches; computer-set 

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• Anthony Ritchie: From the Southern Marches  Year: 1998 

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The choral part of this piece was composed at the invitation of the New Zealand Maori Catholic Central Council, as the test piece for their 50th Jubilee Hui Aranga, held in Otaki, Easter 1996.

• McLeod: He Honore, He Kororia; computer-set 

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• McLeod: He Honore, He Kororia; computer-set 

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• McLeod: He Honore, He Kororia; computer-set 

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This work is a setting of three fragments from the poetry of Christina Rossetti (1830-1894), probably best known for poems such as ‘In the bleak mid-winter’ and ‘Love came down at Christmas’. Certainly much of her poetry has a concern with love and death, although the texts used here are all to do with singing.

The piece divides into three sections following the divisions of the text, and begins with an introductory section for the orchestra. The music of the opening choral section returns in a slightly modified form as the final section.

The work was commissioned for the Hamilton Music School held in August 1991, and was intended for the entire school to perform: choir, orchestra and symphonic band members. The scoring has some degree of flexibility as I could not be sure in advance who I was writing for.

A planned performance of the work at the Bay of Plenty Music School in early 2008, prompted a revision of the work (and the opportunity to put it onto computer). An additional stanza was also added to the second text.

• Hamilton: Rossetti Fragments; facsimile 

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• Hamilton: Rossetti Fragments; facsimile 

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The ‘seven last words’ of Christ are the final statements Chris made as he endured the crucifixion. They are found through the four Gospels although none of the Gospels presents all of them. They are often responses to specific events detailed by the Gospel writers, and therefore do not represent a linked narrative flow.

Setting seven apparently unrelated statements posed a musical challenge. To the biblical texts I have added two traditional Latin texts. A short section from the Good Friday hymn Vexilla Regis opens and closes the work, and the antiphon of Good Friday Crux fidelis (Faithful cross) is sung before Christ’s final words.

The music establishes a meditative tone from the beginning presenting fragments of the Gregorian chant melody Victimae Paschali (“Christians, to the Paschal Lamb offer your thankful praises…”). This melody is also woven through the musical fabric of the work generating some of the melodic material, notably the violin solo about halfway through the work and the melody for the setting of ‘Crux fidelis’. The music reaches a violent climax point at Christ’s words “It is finished!”, before subsiding to a restatement of earlier music, briefly building again at Christ’s repeated cries of “Father”. Throughout the work there is a deliberately uneasy juxtaposition of major and minor versions of the same chord.

In my choice of versions of the text I have left the more archaic forms such as “Thou” in those utterances directed by Christ to God, and used more contemporary language in those directed to others.

Seven Last Words from the Cross was revised for performance by Auckland choir Bach Musica (conductor Rita Paczian) for choir’s 2008 concert series.


David Hamilton

• Hamilton: Seven last words from the cross; computer-set 

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Rough, unpredictable weather and a lengthy, often treacherous coastline meant many ship were wrecked in the early days of New Zealand’s history. Fortunately, such disasters are considerably less frequent today.

One point of the coastline that claimed more than its share of ships was the Timaru roadstead. From November 1865 until 1890, when an ambitious harbour works scheme was completed, the port was the graveyard for 28 ships.

Shipwreck recalls the disaster in setting a portion of a poem printed in the Timaru Herald on 23 May, 1882. The poem details the events and pays tribute to the bravery of all the sailors cnocerned. Shipwreck opens with a setting of a folk ballad, ‘John Smith A. B.’ (printed in The Bulletin Sydney 1904), which describes the loss of a life at sea and illustrates how such tragedy was accepted by the early sailors as part of the hazards of their occupation.

Shipwreck was composed in May to July 1990, revised in May 1997 for the City of Dunedin Choir (musical director Judy Bellingham), orchestrated in May to June 2006 for the Canterbury Philharmonia (musical director Mark Hodgkinson) with funding from The Canterbury Community Trust.

• Norman: Shipwreck; computer-set 

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• Norman: Shipwreck; computer-set 

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• Norman: Shipwreck; computer-set 

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• Noman: Shipwreck; computer-set 

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• Biddington: Spring Dreams; facsimile 

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• Hamilton: Taonga: Gift of the Land; computer-set 

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• Taonga: Gift of the Land 

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