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Metier

Johnson: Gentle Flame - Selected Choral Works

$19.99

Details

Composer
Liz Dilnot Johnson
Artist
Ex Catherdra
Format
CD
Label
Metier
Released
Jun 28, 2024
Catalog #
MEX77125
UPC
809730712524

About

This album presents some of the music Liz Dilnot Johnson has composed for Ex Cathedra. Other works include the recent orchestral cantata I Stand At The Door, setting words by Greta Thunberg and Kurt Masur, described by Jeffrey Skidmore as 'Johnson's love-song for the planet', and two 'eco-carols' Generous Winter (2023) and Imagine A Winter (2023). These carols are inspired by Prof. Kate Raworth, whose book Doughnut Economics encourages a rethinking of global economics to ensure a "safe and just space for humanity to thrive in." The compser says, "I am now seeking ways of cultivating such a space through musical creativity, together with the Ex Cathedra team." The first half of the album presents some of Johnson's earliest works including O Vos with spirals of sopranos unfurling, defined by the Fibonacci Series, written as part of a collaboration with mathematician Prof. Ian Stewart. More recent pieces that have been commissioned and premiered by Ex Cathedra, with whom Liz is composer-in-residence, include Blake Reimagined, a lockdown work originally composed for remote choir (later released on Youtube) with soloists including Carnatic singer Debipriya Sircar with Jazz and Soul singers Margaret Lingas and Gabriella Liandu. Four of Johnson's carols include the playful eco-carol A Wild Midwinter Carol, the acerbic Magi (her earliest work), the eight-part advent motet Gentle Flame and the tender lullaby For This Babe. The Windhover, setting Gerard Manley Hopkins' extraordinary poemis a tour de force, scored for baritone solo for the expressively powerful voice of Lawrence White with 10-part choir, summoning up the wild kestrel at dawn. The range of choral works on this album spans the enormous output across the composer's life, performed with great flair by Ex Cathedra directed by Jeffrey Skidmore. The second half of the album presents one of Johnson's large-scale choral works, When A Child Is A Witness - Requiem for Refugees, winner of the Ivors Composer Award for community and participation (2022). Setting words from the traditional Requiem Mass, along with words from the English Prayer Book, these choral movements encompass a world of music from a simple call and response song to complex and emotionally driven music that takes the listener on an emotional journey, moving from darkness into light. Liz Dilnot Johnson, initially a dedicated teacher in South London and Birmingham, redirected her career towards composition after pursuing an MA and PhD at Birmingham Conservatoire. Despite plans to return to teaching, mentor Philip Cashian encouraged her to continue composing. Johnson's music has garnered widespread acclaim, performed by renowned artists and ensembles internationally. Her chamber works have earned numerous prizes, including the Birmingham Chamber Music Society Composition Prize and the International Alliance of Women Musicians' Gideon Prize. Larger-scale compositions like "de l'herbe qui s'eveille" have been lauded for their evocative qualities. Notably, her piece "Moon Incantations" was a British Composer Awards finalist, and her Requiem for Aleppo integrates amateur and professional performers, showcasing her commitment to socially inspired compositions. Currently, she is embarking on a significant project with Ex Cathedra, composing new music for period instruments akin to J.S. Bach's cantatas.

Tracklist 20 tracks

  1. 1 Gentle Flame 03:04
    Track
    1
    Title
    Gentle Flame
    Duration
    03:04
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  2. 2 My Heart Awakes: For Hester 02:15
    Track
    2
    Title
    My Heart Awakes: For Hester
    Duration
    02:15
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Suzzie Vango
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  3. 3 O Vos 03:15
    Track
    3
    Title
    O Vos
    Duration
    03:15
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  4. 4 The Windhover 08:54
    Track
    4
    Title
    The Windhover
    Duration
    08:54
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Lawrence White
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  5. 5 Blake Reimagined 02:56
    Track
    5
    Title
    Blake Reimagined
    Duration
    02:56
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, Margaret Lingas, Debipriya Sircar
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  6. 6 Magi 02:26
    Track
    6
    Title
    Magi
    Duration
    02:26
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  7. 7 A Wild Midwinter Carol 02:45
    Track
    7
    Title
    A Wild Midwinter Carol
    Duration
    02:45
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  8. 8 For This Babe 03:59
    Track
    8
    Title
    For This Babe
    Duration
    03:59
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  9. 9 Requiem aeternam 02:09
    Track
    9
    Title
    Requiem aeternam
    Duration
    02:09
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  10. 10 Why Do the Nations Rage 02:44
    Track
    10
    Title
    Why Do the Nations Rage
    Duration
    02:44
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, James Keefe
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  11. 11 Kyrie eleison 05:20
    Track
    11
    Title
    Kyrie eleison
    Duration
    05:20
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, Rupert Jeffcoat
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  12. 12 I Will Life Up Mine Eyes 04:16
    Track
    12
    Title
    I Will Life Up Mine Eyes
    Duration
    04:16
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, Rupert Jeffcoat
  13. 13 Lacrimosa 03:55
    Track
    13
    Title
    Lacrimosa
    Duration
    03:55
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, James Keefe
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  14. 14 Sanctus 02:13
    Track
    14
    Title
    Sanctus
    Duration
    02:13
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, James Keefe
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  15. 15 Agnus Dei 04:13
    Track
    15
    Title
    Agnus Dei
    Duration
    04:13
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, Rupert Jeffcoat
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  16. 16 When A Child Is A Witness 04:10
    Track
    16
    Title
    When A Child Is A Witness
    Duration
    04:10
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, James Keefe
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  17. 17 Libera Me 02:48
    Track
    17
    Title
    Libera Me
    Duration
    02:48
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, James Keefe
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  18. 18 If I Take the Wings 04:05
    Track
    18
    Title
    If I Take the Wings
    Duration
    04:05
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, Rupert Jeffcoat
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  19. 19 Lighten Our Darkness 02:44
    Track
    19
    Title
    Lighten Our Darkness
    Duration
    02:44
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore
  20. 20 Lux aeterna 04:31
    Track
    20
    Title
    Lux aeterna
    Duration
    04:31
    Composer
    Liz Johnson
    Performer
    Gabriella Liandu, James Keefe
    Ensemble
    Ex Cathedra
    Conductor
    Jeffrey Skidmore