Thursday 7 May RMN Classical releases the CD “In Focus” featuring Ion Marmarinos’ The Horses performed by soprano Harriet Burns and pianist Horacio López Redondo, recorded in London in 2017 by Adaq Khan.
The Horses is based on the poem of Ted Hughes (courtesy of Faber and Faber Ltd.)
The music attempts to reflect the vivid theatricality demonstrated in the poem of Ted Hughes. I perceive this poem as the struggle between Angels (horses) and forces of evil.
Ion Marmarinos
The primary motivic figure in the vocal line on which further variations are based, articulates an Arabic ambience which connotes the mystery, eroticism and charm of wild Arabic horses, expressed here with an intervallic structure of minor seconds, minor and major thirds. Through a lyrical vocal writing, the constant transposition of these intervals results in a continuously changing tonality, which symbolizes restlessness and struggle, set against the piano’s rhythmic variations which imitate the horse’s running pace.
The Horses received an honourable/special mention at the RMN’s 2019 international/call competition for chamber works.
This work received its World Premiere in London in 2018 by soprano Philippa Boyle Soprano & pianist Clare Simmonds. It has been also performed in Paris, France by Camille Le Bail – Soprano & Simon Carrey (2018) and in Kalamata, Greece by Fanie Antonelou & Apostolos Palios (2019) .
In addition to its physical distribution the CD “In Focus” will also be digitally distributed worldwide through the main music streaming platforms including iTunes, Apple Music, Amazon Music and Spotify.
In the pipeline for Ion Marmarinos, the album “New Choral Voices, Vol. 4” by Ablaze Records, to be released later in 2020, will feature Marmarinos’ Sacretum for two sopranos and two mezzos. The piece was recorded in Cincinnati, Ohio with Coro Volante and conducted by Bret Scott. Sacretum was among the winners of the 2018 Ablaze records international call/competition New Choral Voices Series.
Also, Ion Marmarinos’ Par Ciel for orchestra was selected to be performed by the Sydney Contemporary Orchestra on Friday 9 October at Verbrugghen Hall in Sydney, Australia.
Composers Edition is proud to publish Ion Marmarinos works, which are available for purchase through our website.
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Tags: Ablaze Records, Adaq Khan, Bret Scott, CD release, Coro Volante, Harriet Burns, Horacio López Redondo, In Focus CD, Ion Marmarinos, New Choral Voices, Par Ciel, RNM Classical, Sacretum, Sidney Contemporary Orchesra, Ted Hughes, The Horses, Verbrugghen Hall
