Rachel Portman: Theme from Emma Context Rachel Portman wrote the score for the 1996 film Emma and was released in July of the same year by Hollywood Records. Portman commented on the style of the score saying that it was: “A purely classical score. It is an orchestral piece, Read more…
Ursula Mamlok: Concerto for Oboe Context Born on February 1st, 1923, Ursula Mamlok was born in Berlin, Germany into a primarily Jewish family. Her biological father, Hans Meyer, died when she was a baby, but her mother remarried fairly soon after. Mamlok composed and performed as a child in Berlin, however, Read more…
Debbie Wiseman: Wolf Hall Context First broadcast in 2015, BBC’s Wolf Hall is a six-part historical series based on Hilary Mantel’s novels of the same name. The story follows that of Thomas Cromwell in the court of Henry VIII through to the death of Sir Thomas More. Debbie Wiseman wrote Read more…
Missy Mazzoli: Dark with Excessive Bright Context Missy Mazolli composed Dark with Excessive Bright specifically for contrabass soloist, Maxime Bibeau and the Australian Chamber Orchestra in 2018. Part of Mazzoli’s programme note reads: “I was inspired in no small part by Maxime’s double bass, a massive instrument built in Read more…
Louise Farrenc: Symphony No.3 Context Born in May 1804, French composer, pedagogue and concert pianist Louise Farrenc enjoyed a fruitful reputation during her lifetime. She learned under some of the best including Johann Nepomuk Hummel and Ignaz Moscheles. She also received composition lessons from Anton Reicha – a professor at Read more…
Tansy Davies: neon Context Tansy Davies was born in May 1973 in Bristol, UK. From a young age she was interested in singing and playing guitar in rock ensembles. Davies is also a proficient French Horn player and played in a range of various ensembles. As well as performance, Davies was also Read more…
Ann Southam: Webster’s Spin Context After years of writing electronic music, Canadian composer Ann Southam abandoned the tapes and tracks and focused on more classically-inclined pieces. Webster’s Spin, a composition for string orchestra, was composed in 1993 after a commission came from the CBC. The Manitoba Chamber Orchestra premiered the Read more…
Joan Tower: Violin Concerto Context Joan Tower was born in New Rochelle, New York in 1938. When Tower was nine, her family moved to Bolivia, which she describes as an integral part of her compositional style. Upon her father’s insistence, she learnt the piano and had consistent musical training. Her Read more…
Pinar Toprak: Captain Marvel Theme Context Turkish-American composer Pinar Toprak has composed a number of soundtracks for film, television and video games. She has been the recipient of two International Film Music Critic Association Awards as well as receiving numerous nominations for other works. Soundtracks include The Lightkeepers (2009), The Read more…
Ruth Gipps: Rhapsody for Clarinet and String Quartet Context By the time of her death in 1999, Ruth Gipps had an incredible oeuvre of music to represent her career throughout the 20th century. She initially studied oboe with Léon Goossens, piano with Arthur Alexander and composition with Gordon Jacob and Read more…