{"id":475,"date":"2018-02-19T16:31:19","date_gmt":"2018-02-19T15:31:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/?p=475"},"modified":"2023-08-25T21:55:41","modified_gmt":"2023-08-25T20:55:41","slug":"bird-songs-2007-9-song-cycle-for-mezzo-soprano-and-piano","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/?p=475","title":{"rendered":"Bird Songs (2007-9) song cycle for mezzo-soprano and piano"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em><strong>Bird Songs <\/strong><\/em><strong>(2007-9)<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong> &#8220;Fifty-Nine Swans&#8221; (Yeats)<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong> &#8220;Black Rook in Rainy Weather&#8221; (Plath)<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong> &#8220;The Hierarchies of Sound&#8221; (Evans)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>I&#8217;ve uploaded 3 performances of my song cycle for mezzo and piano, &#8220;Bird Songs&#8221;. Each time working on this song cycle from scratch with a different singer was extraordinarily fun, and a tremendous challenge and learning experience.\u00a0 I played the outrageously tricky piano part in all of these performances:<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>As far as I&#8217;m aware, the first complete performance was given by\u00a0Danae Eleni, at my Composer Portrait Concert in Turner Sims Concert Hall, Southampton, 14th May 2012:<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- Starting bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/0bf5ee143c88b3ec4f94388a16d79681.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/3976949497\/ --><iframe src='https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=2993429246\/track=3976949497\/size=large\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5' class='embed-iframe embed-bandcamp' width='100' height='120' data-url='https:\/\/0bf5ee143c88b3ec4f94388a16d79681.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/3976949497\/' frameborder='0' style='width:100%;max-width:100%;min-width:400px;' allowfullscreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' oallowfullscreen='true' msallowfullscreen='true' ><strong>HTML Embed: An unidentified error has occurred.<\/strong><span class=\"error-message\">This feature requires inline frames. You have iframes disabled or your browser does not support them.<\/span><span class=\"error-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/0bf5ee143c88b3ec4f94388a16d79681.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/3976949497\/\" target=\"_blank\">Open link in a new tab.<\/a><\/span><\/iframe><!-- Ending bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/0bf5ee143c88b3ec4f94388a16d79681.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/3976949497\/ --><!-- Cached embed generated on June 25th 2026, 08:15:27 AM) -->\n<!-- Starting bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/2f6b2ab1954581fe55070c2c318f30e2.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/3648198597\/ --><iframe src='https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=2993429246\/track=3648198597\/size=large\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5' class='embed-iframe embed-bandcamp' width='100' height='120' data-url='https:\/\/2f6b2ab1954581fe55070c2c318f30e2.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/3648198597\/' frameborder='0' style='width:100%;max-width:100%;min-width:400px;' allowfullscreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' oallowfullscreen='true' msallowfullscreen='true' ><strong>HTML Embed: An unidentified error has occurred.<\/strong><span class=\"error-message\">This feature requires inline frames. You have iframes disabled or your browser does not support them.<\/span><span class=\"error-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/2f6b2ab1954581fe55070c2c318f30e2.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/3648198597\/\" target=\"_blank\">Open link in a new tab.<\/a><\/span><\/iframe><!-- Ending bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/2f6b2ab1954581fe55070c2c318f30e2.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/3648198597\/ --><!-- Cached embed generated on June 24th 2026, 12:15:09 PM) -->\n<!-- Starting bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/e335e2929ddaf1fe37145b1c80f2cf3b.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/2030182344\/ --><iframe src='https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=2993429246\/track=2030182344\/size=large\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5' class='embed-iframe embed-bandcamp' width='100' height='120' data-url='https:\/\/e335e2929ddaf1fe37145b1c80f2cf3b.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/2030182344\/' frameborder='0' style='width:100%;max-width:100%;min-width:400px;' allowfullscreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' oallowfullscreen='true' msallowfullscreen='true' ><strong>HTML Embed: An unidentified error has occurred.<\/strong><span class=\"error-message\">This feature requires inline frames. You have iframes disabled or your browser does not support them.<\/span><span class=\"error-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/e335e2929ddaf1fe37145b1c80f2cf3b.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/2030182344\/\" target=\"_blank\">Open link in a new tab.<\/a><\/span><\/iframe><!-- Ending bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/e335e2929ddaf1fe37145b1c80f2cf3b.bandcamp.com\/album\/2993429246\/track\/2030182344\/ --><!-- Cached embed generated on June 27th 2026, 06:21:53 PM) -->\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Video of my and Danae&#8217;s performances:<\/p>\n<div class=\"epyt-video-wrapper\"><div  style=\"display: block; margin: 0px auto;\"  id=\"_ytid_58881\"  width=\"810\" height=\"456\"  data-origwidth=\"810\" data-origheight=\"456\"  data-relstop=\"1\" data-facadesrc=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/KAGtSduuaMI?enablejsapi=1&origin=https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com&autoplay=0&cc_load_policy=0&iv_load_policy=1&loop=0&fs=1&playsinline=0&controls=1&disablekb=0&color=red&cc_lang_pref=&rel=0&autohide=2&theme=dark&\" class=\"__youtube_prefs__ epyt-facade no-lazyload\" data-epautoplay=\"1\" ><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" data-spai-excluded=\"true\" class=\"epyt-facade-poster skip-lazy\" loading=\"lazy\"  alt=\"YouTube player\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/KAGtSduuaMI\/maxresdefault.jpg?w=810&#038;ssl=1\"  \/><button class=\"epyt-facade-play\" aria-label=\"Play\"><svg data-no-lazy=\"1\" height=\"100%\" version=\"1.1\" viewBox=\"0 0 68 48\" width=\"100%\"><path class=\"ytp-large-play-button-bg\" d=\"M66.52,7.74c-0.78-2.93-2.49-5.41-5.42-6.19C55.79,.13,34,0,34,0S12.21,.13,6.9,1.55 C3.97,2.33,2.27,4.81,1.48,7.74C0.06,13.05,0,24,0,24s0.06,10.95,1.48,16.26c0.78,2.93,2.49,5.41,5.42,6.19 C12.21,47.87,34,48,34,48s21.79-0.13,27.1-1.55c2.93-0.78,4.64-3.26,5.42-6.19C67.94,34.95,68,24,68,24S67.94,13.05,66.52,7.74z\" fill=\"#f00\"><\/path><path d=\"M 45,24 27,14 27,34\" fill=\"#fff\"><\/path><\/svg><\/button><\/div><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/v.youku.com\/v_show\/id_XMzE2NDA1NTQxNg==.html?spm=a2hzp.8253869.0.0\">http:\/\/v.youku.com\/v_show\/id_XMzE2NDA1NTQxNg==.html?spm=a2hzp.8253869.0.0<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"epyt-video-wrapper\"><div  style=\"display: block; margin: 0px auto;\"  id=\"_ytid_87345\"  width=\"810\" height=\"456\"  data-origwidth=\"810\" data-origheight=\"456\"  data-relstop=\"1\" data-facadesrc=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/rySFKrtkhLE?enablejsapi=1&origin=https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com&autoplay=0&cc_load_policy=0&iv_load_policy=1&loop=0&fs=1&playsinline=0&controls=1&disablekb=0&color=red&cc_lang_pref=&rel=0&autohide=2&theme=dark&\" class=\"__youtube_prefs__ epyt-facade no-lazyload\" data-epautoplay=\"1\" ><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" data-spai-excluded=\"true\" class=\"epyt-facade-poster skip-lazy\" loading=\"lazy\"  alt=\"YouTube player\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/rySFKrtkhLE\/maxresdefault.jpg?w=810&#038;ssl=1\"  \/><button class=\"epyt-facade-play\" aria-label=\"Play\"><svg data-no-lazy=\"1\" height=\"100%\" version=\"1.1\" viewBox=\"0 0 68 48\" width=\"100%\"><path class=\"ytp-large-play-button-bg\" d=\"M66.52,7.74c-0.78-2.93-2.49-5.41-5.42-6.19C55.79,.13,34,0,34,0S12.21,.13,6.9,1.55 C3.97,2.33,2.27,4.81,1.48,7.74C0.06,13.05,0,24,0,24s0.06,10.95,1.48,16.26c0.78,2.93,2.49,5.41,5.42,6.19 C12.21,47.87,34,48,34,48s21.79-0.13,27.1-1.55c2.93-0.78,4.64-3.26,5.42-6.19C67.94,34.95,68,24,68,24S67.94,13.05,66.52,7.74z\" fill=\"#f00\"><\/path><path d=\"M 45,24 27,14 27,34\" fill=\"#fff\"><\/path><\/svg><\/button><\/div><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/v.youku.com\/v_show\/id_XMzE2NDE1MTU5Mg==.html?spm=a2hzp.8253869.0.0\">http:\/\/v.youku.com\/v_show\/id_XMzE2NDE1MTU5Mg==.html?spm=a2hzp.8253869.0.0<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"epyt-video-wrapper\"><div  style=\"display: block; margin: 0px auto;\"  id=\"_ytid_87299\"  width=\"810\" height=\"456\"  data-origwidth=\"810\" data-origheight=\"456\"  data-relstop=\"1\" data-facadesrc=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/qxrh0cmFQCc?enablejsapi=1&origin=https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com&autoplay=0&cc_load_policy=0&iv_load_policy=1&loop=0&fs=1&playsinline=0&controls=1&disablekb=0&color=red&cc_lang_pref=&rel=0&autohide=2&theme=dark&\" class=\"__youtube_prefs__ epyt-facade no-lazyload\" data-epautoplay=\"1\" ><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" data-spai-excluded=\"true\" class=\"epyt-facade-poster skip-lazy\" loading=\"lazy\"  alt=\"YouTube player\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/qxrh0cmFQCc\/maxresdefault.jpg?w=810&#038;ssl=1\"  \/><button class=\"epyt-facade-play\" aria-label=\"Play\"><svg data-no-lazy=\"1\" height=\"100%\" version=\"1.1\" viewBox=\"0 0 68 48\" width=\"100%\"><path class=\"ytp-large-play-button-bg\" d=\"M66.52,7.74c-0.78-2.93-2.49-5.41-5.42-6.19C55.79,.13,34,0,34,0S12.21,.13,6.9,1.55 C3.97,2.33,2.27,4.81,1.48,7.74C0.06,13.05,0,24,0,24s0.06,10.95,1.48,16.26c0.78,2.93,2.49,5.41,5.42,6.19 C12.21,47.87,34,48,34,48s21.79-0.13,27.1-1.55c2.93-0.78,4.64-3.26,5.42-6.19C67.94,34.95,68,24,68,24S67.94,13.05,66.52,7.74z\" fill=\"#f00\"><\/path><path d=\"M 45,24 27,14 27,34\" fill=\"#fff\"><\/path><\/svg><\/button><\/div><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/v.youku.com\/v_show\/id_XMzE2NDE1MTYwNA==.html?spm=a2hzp.8253869.0.0\">http:\/\/v.youku.com\/v_show\/id_XMzE2NDE1MTYwNA==.html?spm=a2hzp.8253869.0.0<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The second complete performance of the song cycle was given by Julija Karaliunaite in a Druskomanija Festival recital, Hotel Regina 20<sup>th<\/sup> May 2012.<\/p>\n<p>I was honoured to be invited to perform a concert with soprano (and doctor of mathematics) Julija Karaliunaite at the 2012 Druskomanija Festival. I turned up in Vilnius a week early to rehearse with Julija, and we embarked on an intense week preparing songs by Cage, Gelgotas, Vitkauskaite, as well as Bird Songs. I also performed (for only the second time in my life) some piano pieces by Michael Finnissy.\u00a0 The recital took place in Druskininkai.\u00a0 On our return to Vilnius we were equally honoured to be able to repeat the programme at the Lithuanian Composers&#8217; Union&#8211; a place which has a very special place in my heart.\u00a0 This recording is from the Druskininkai performance:<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- Starting bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/7ea6c4b42832dc19297b38d452ddcc8c.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/2178433693\/ --><iframe src='https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=4187268139\/track=2178433693\/size=large\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5' class='embed-iframe embed-bandcamp' width='100' height='120' data-url='https:\/\/7ea6c4b42832dc19297b38d452ddcc8c.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/2178433693\/' frameborder='0' style='width:100%;max-width:100%;min-width:400px;' allowfullscreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' oallowfullscreen='true' msallowfullscreen='true' ><strong>HTML Embed: An unidentified error has occurred.<\/strong><span class=\"error-message\">This feature requires inline frames. You have iframes disabled or your browser does not support them.<\/span><span class=\"error-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/7ea6c4b42832dc19297b38d452ddcc8c.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/2178433693\/\" target=\"_blank\">Open link in a new tab.<\/a><\/span><\/iframe><!-- Ending bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/7ea6c4b42832dc19297b38d452ddcc8c.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/2178433693\/ --><!-- Cached embed generated on June 26th 2026, 11:43:51 AM) -->\n<!-- Starting bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/fe438c4082e65beed21bd9d53385cc76.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/3074186550\/ --><iframe src='https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=4187268139\/track=3074186550\/size=large\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5' class='embed-iframe embed-bandcamp' width='100' height='120' data-url='https:\/\/fe438c4082e65beed21bd9d53385cc76.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/3074186550\/' frameborder='0' style='width:100%;max-width:100%;min-width:400px;' allowfullscreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' oallowfullscreen='true' msallowfullscreen='true' ><strong>HTML Embed: An unidentified error has occurred.<\/strong><span class=\"error-message\">This feature requires inline frames. You have iframes disabled or your browser does not support them.<\/span><span class=\"error-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/fe438c4082e65beed21bd9d53385cc76.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/3074186550\/\" target=\"_blank\">Open link in a new tab.<\/a><\/span><\/iframe><!-- Ending bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/fe438c4082e65beed21bd9d53385cc76.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/3074186550\/ --><!-- Cached embed generated on June 25th 2026, 08:15:27 AM) -->\n<!-- Starting bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/46b148ffe29d077af2da9084182f35b4.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/106799509\/ --><iframe src='https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=4187268139\/track=106799509\/size=large\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5' class='embed-iframe embed-bandcamp' width='100' height='120' data-url='https:\/\/46b148ffe29d077af2da9084182f35b4.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/106799509\/' frameborder='0' style='width:100%;max-width:100%;min-width:400px;' allowfullscreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' oallowfullscreen='true' msallowfullscreen='true' ><strong>HTML Embed: An unidentified error has occurred.<\/strong><span class=\"error-message\">This feature requires inline frames. You have iframes disabled or your browser does not support them.<\/span><span class=\"error-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/46b148ffe29d077af2da9084182f35b4.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/106799509\/\" target=\"_blank\">Open link in a new tab.<\/a><\/span><\/iframe><!-- Ending bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/46b148ffe29d077af2da9084182f35b4.bandcamp.com\/album\/4187268139\/track\/106799509\/ --><!-- Cached embed generated on June 25th 2026, 08:15:27 AM) -->\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The third complete performance was given by Lucy Williams in my second composer portrait concert in 2012, &#8220;Music for Voices&#8221;:<\/p>\n<!-- Starting bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/71c6a61a102cb5b1ea6e111a5090f97c.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/2101070046\/ --><iframe src='https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=1808529960\/track=2101070046\/size=large\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5' class='embed-iframe embed-bandcamp' width='100' height='120' data-url='https:\/\/71c6a61a102cb5b1ea6e111a5090f97c.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/2101070046\/' frameborder='0' style='width:100%;max-width:100%;min-width:400px;' allowfullscreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' oallowfullscreen='true' msallowfullscreen='true' ><strong>HTML Embed: An unidentified error has occurred.<\/strong><span class=\"error-message\">This feature requires inline frames. You have iframes disabled or your browser does not support them.<\/span><span class=\"error-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/71c6a61a102cb5b1ea6e111a5090f97c.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/2101070046\/\" target=\"_blank\">Open link in a new tab.<\/a><\/span><\/iframe><!-- Ending bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/71c6a61a102cb5b1ea6e111a5090f97c.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/2101070046\/ --><!-- Cached embed generated on June 24th 2026, 12:15:09 PM) -->\n<!-- Starting bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/3fce2b4b8c28bd52b209d2033ee677ec.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/3066012309\/ --><iframe src='https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=1808529960\/track=3066012309\/size=large\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5' class='embed-iframe embed-bandcamp' width='100' height='120' data-url='https:\/\/3fce2b4b8c28bd52b209d2033ee677ec.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/3066012309\/' frameborder='0' style='width:100%;max-width:100%;min-width:400px;' allowfullscreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' oallowfullscreen='true' msallowfullscreen='true' ><strong>HTML Embed: An unidentified error has occurred.<\/strong><span class=\"error-message\">This feature requires inline frames. You have iframes disabled or your browser does not support them.<\/span><span class=\"error-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/3fce2b4b8c28bd52b209d2033ee677ec.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/3066012309\/\" target=\"_blank\">Open link in a new tab.<\/a><\/span><\/iframe><!-- Ending bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/3fce2b4b8c28bd52b209d2033ee677ec.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/3066012309\/ --><!-- Cached embed generated on June 27th 2026, 06:21:53 PM) -->\n<!-- Starting bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/2119feb441f7bc353f303122129d44a7.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/833212531\/ --><iframe src='https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=1808529960\/track=833212531\/size=large\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5' class='embed-iframe embed-bandcamp' width='100' height='120' data-url='https:\/\/2119feb441f7bc353f303122129d44a7.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/833212531\/' frameborder='0' style='width:100%;max-width:100%;min-width:400px;' allowfullscreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' oallowfullscreen='true' msallowfullscreen='true' ><strong>HTML Embed: An unidentified error has occurred.<\/strong><span class=\"error-message\">This feature requires inline frames. You have iframes disabled or your browser does not support them.<\/span><span class=\"error-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/2119feb441f7bc353f303122129d44a7.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/833212531\/\" target=\"_blank\">Open link in a new tab.<\/a><\/span><\/iframe><!-- Ending bandcamp iframe embed for https:\/\/2119feb441f7bc353f303122129d44a7.bandcamp.com\/album\/1808529960\/track\/833212531\/ --><!-- Cached embed generated on June 24th 2026, 12:15:09 PM) -->\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Lucy Williams was the dedicatee of the cycle, and it was in fact she who introduced me to Yeats&#8217; &#8220;Wild Swans at Coole&#8221;. Lucy individually premiered all the songs from the cycle, but this performance from my second Composer Portrait concert in Southampton was the first time we&#8217;d performed the entire cycle together. It was an exhilirating experience.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Notes:<\/p>\n<p>Last year I made a Chinese translation of the beautiful poem &#8220;Hierarchies of Sound&#8221; by Paul Evans, the third song from the cycle (thanks to Stella Zhou and Emma Zhang for helping with it):<\/p>\n<p>\u53ea\u662f\u7164\u6e23\u5728\u5feb\u8981\u7184\u706d\u7684\u706b\u7130\u4e2d\u53d1\u51fa\u7684\u6700\u8f7b\u5fae\u7684\u53ee\u5f53\u58f0\u5c31\u5524\u9192\u4e86\u6211\u7684\u5fc3\u7075\u3002\u6211\u6b63\u5728\u8bfb\u4e00\u9996\u8bd7\uff0c\u8bd7\u4eba\u8bf4\uff0c\u8fd9\u662f\u706b\u5728\u58c1\u7089\u7684\u58f0\u97f3\uff0c\u6109\u60a6\u7684\u706b\u82b1\uff01<\/p>\n<p>\u5b83\u5c06\u6211\u5524\u9192\uff0c\u5e26\u6211\u8d70\u8fdb\u4e00\u6bb5\u56de\u5fc6\uff0c\u6211\u5750\u5728\u6cf0\u6664\u58eb\u6cb3\u7554\uff0c\u897f\u65af\u6cb3\u5dde\uff0c\u542c\u7740\u4e00\u4e2a\u751f\u9508\u7684\u7f50\u5b50\u522e\u5cb8\u7684\u53ee\u5f53\u58f0\uff0c\u88ab\u4e00\u5708\u4e00\u5708\u7684\u6d9f\u6f2a\u63a8\u8fdb\u3002<\/p>\n<p>\u91d1\u5c5e\u522e\u7740\u77f3\u5934\u4f7f\u6211\u8ba4\u8bc6\u5230\u58f0\u97f3\u4e4b\u5c42\u7ea7\u3002\u9884\u7ea6\u7684\u706b\u82b1\u3002<\/p>\n<p>\u4e00\u53ea\u6d77\u9e25\u4ece\u5cb8\u8fb9\u98de\u5230\u4e2d\u6e38\uff0c\u7ffc\u5c16\u62cd\u6253\u7740\u6c34\u9762\uff0c\u4e00\u4e2a\u6c89\u91cd\u7684\u58f0\u97f3\u3002<\/p>\n<p>\u6b63\u5f53\u6211\u5728\u8046\u542c\u90a3\u8bd7\u4e2d\u706b\u7130\u7684\u58f0\u97f3\u65f6\uff0c\u7164\u6e23\u7684\u58f0\u97f3 &#8211; \u53c8\u6216\u8005\u662f\u7f50\u5b50\uff1f\u4f7f\u6211\u9677\u5165\u90a3\u6cb3\u7684\u5bc2\u9759\u3002<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>My notes from 2012:<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Bird Songs\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><strong>(2007-9)\u00a0is a\u00a0cycle of three songs for mezzo-soprano and piano, setting poems by <\/strong><strong>W.B.<\/strong><strong> Yeats,\u00a0Sylvia Plath, and Paul Evans.\u00a0\u00a0The cycle traces a progression from\u00a0dominance of the\u00a0voice (in &#8220;Fifty-Nine Swans&#8221;),\u00a0through\u00a0equality of voice and piano (in &#8220;Black Rook&#8230;&#8221;), through to dominance of the piano at the beginning of &#8220;The Hierarchies of Sound&#8221;.\u00a0\u00a0Through this third song, the voice\u00a0breaks\u00a0free again.\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>All three\u00a0poems feature birds.\u00a0 Yeats imagines a flock of swans that have returned to the same lake\u00a0for nineteen Autumns, and wonders\u00a0whose eyes they will delight with their beauty when they&#8217;ve flown away.\u00a0\u00a0For Plath, the sight of a\u00a0black rook arranging its feathers in the rain\u00a0stimulates\u00a0transcendent visions, and imagines one day the sudden appearance of an angel before one&#8217;s eyes.\u00a0 The passing image\u00a0of a\u00a0sea<\/strong> <strong>gull and the sound of its wing-tips hitting the water is\u00a0at the heart of a confusing melange of\u00a0sound-memories: what is the present experience of the narrator, what is\u00a0the memory, and what is an image in a\u00a0poem?\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>You might hear certain pictorial elements in the music: the sudden leap to a high note in the vocal part at the end of the first song, suggesting the departure of the swan; the explosive music in the piano at the end of the second song, suggesting the arrival of an angel; in the third song, the crackling of cinders in a fire,\u00a0a tin hitting the stone edge of the river, and the swirling depths of the Thames, which are also the swirlings of our memories.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Tianjin December 2016 notes with my Chinese translation:<\/p>\n<p><em>Bird Songs <\/em>is a song cycle for mezzo-soprano and piano setting poems by Yeats, Plath and Paul Evans, describing different natural and urban scenes featuring birds, and the psychological state of the viewer as he or she watches them.\u00a0 The music does not imitate songs of specific birds, but evokes in sound the flight and appearance of the birds as well as the atmosphere of their environment.\u00a0 The first song sets \u201cWild Swans at Coole\u201d by W. B. Yeats, in which the poet describes seeing a skein of swans return to the same lake every Autumn for nineteen years in a row, only to find in the twentieth year that they have not returned.\u00a0 He imagines where they have flown to.\u00a0 The second song sets \u201cBlack Rook in Rainy Weather\u201d by Silvia Plath, in which she describes the appearance of a simple rook in visionary terms, as if it were an angel or something magical; she describes the way many everyday phenomena can create such a sense of the metaphysical.\u00a0 The third song by English poet Paul Evans, \u201cThe Hierarchies of Sound\u201d, describes walking beside the Thames in London, and watching seagulls floating high above.\u00a0 He describes the sounds of the river, and how they excite in him memories of other sounds and places; as he sleep by the river, the sounds of the river mix with the sounds of his dreams.\u00a0 The three songs together evoke and celebrate the beauty of birds and their ability to inspire in us visions, emotions and memories.<\/p>\n<p>\u300a\u9e1f\u4e4b\u6b4c\u300b\u00a0 \u662f\u4e3a\u6b21\u5973\u9ad8\u97f3\u3001\u94a2\u7434\u800c\u4f5c\u7684\u827a\u672f\u6b4c\u66f2\uff0c \u7531\u53f6\u829d\uff08W.B.Yeats\uff09\u3001\u666e\u62c9\u65af\uff08Sylvia Plath\uff09\u548c\u4fdd\u7f57\u00b7\u4f0a\u4e07\uff08Paul Evans\uff09\u7684\u8bd7\u7ec4\u6210\uff0c \u63cf\u8ff0\u4e86\u5728\u5927\u81ea\u7136\u4e0e\u57ce\u5e02\u8fd9\u4e24\u79cd\u4e0d\u540c\u573a\u666f\u4e0b\u9e1f\u7684\u7279\u5f81\uff0c \u4ee5\u53ca\u770b\u9e1f\u7684\u4eba\u7684\u4e0d\u540c\u7684\u5fc3\u7406\u3002\u97f3\u4e50\u5e76\u6ca1\u6709\u7279\u522b\u7684\u53bb\u6a21\u4eff\u9e1f\u7c7b\uff0c \u4f46\u662f\u7528\u58f0\u97f3\u53bb\u8868\u73b0\u9e1f\u7c7b\u7684\u98de\u7fd4\u4e0e\u51fa\u73b0\uff0c \u4ee5\u53ca\u4ed6\u4eec\u751f\u6d3b\u7684\u73af\u5883\u6c1b\u56f4\u3002\u7b2c\u4e00\u90e8\u5206\u662f\u53f6\u829d\u7684\u8bd7\u201d\u5728\u5e93\u52d2\u7684\u91ce\u751f\u5929\u9e45\u201d\uff0c \u8fd9\u9996\u8bd7\u63cf\u8ff0\u4e86\u4e00\u7fa4\u5929\u9e45\u6392\u6210\u4e00\u961f\uff0c\u5341\u4e5d\u5e74\u95f4\u6bcf\u5e74\u79cb\u5929\u90fd\u4f1a\u56de\u5230\u540c\u6837\u7684\u4e00\u7247\u6e56\u4e2d\uff0c \u7136\u800c\u7b2c\u4e8c\u5341\u5e74\uff0c \u4ed6\u4eec\u6ca1\u6709\u56de\u6765\u3002\u8bd7\u4eba\u60f3\u8c61\u4ed6\u4eec\u5c06\u98de\u53bb\u4f55\u5904\u3002\u7b2c\u4e8c\u9996\u6b4c\u662f\u666e\u62c9\u65af\u7684\u201c\u96e8\u5929\u4e2d\u7684\u9ed1\u4e4c\u9e26\u201d\uff0c \u5979\u7528\u5e7b\u60f3\u7684\u8bed\u8a00\u63cf\u5199\u4e86\u4e00\u53ea\u4e4c\u9e26\uff0c \u5c31\u597d\u50cf\u5b83\u662f\u4e00\u4e2a\u5929\u4f7f\u6216\u6709\u9b54\u529b\u7684\u9e1f\uff0c \u5979\u63cf\u8ff0\u4e86\u6bcf\u5929\u90fd\u53d1\u751f\u7684\u666e\u901a\u73b0\u8c61\u600e\u4e48\u80fd\u521b\u9020\u51fa\u7384\u5999\u666f\u8c61\u3002\u7b2c\u4e09\u9996\u6b4c\u662f\u82f1\u56fd\u8bd7\u4eba\u4fdd\u7f57\u4f0a\u4e07\u7684\u4f5c\u54c1\uff0c \u201c\u58f0\u97f3\u7684\u5c42\u7ea7\u201d\uff0c \u63cf\u8ff0\u4e86\u4ed6\u6f2b\u6b65\u5728\u6cf0\u6664\u58eb\u6cb3\u7554\uff0c \u770b\u5230\u6d77\u9e25\u98de\u7fd4\u5728\u6cb3\u9762\u4e0a\u3002\u4ed6\u63cf\u5199\u4e86\u6cb3\u6c34\u7684\u58f0\u97f3\uff0c \u8fd9\u79cd\u58f0\u97f3\u5982\u4f55\u5524\u9192\u4e86\u4ed6\u8bb0\u5fc6\u4e2d\u7684\u5176\u4ed6\u58f0\u97f3\u548c\u5730\u65b9\uff1b \u5f53\u4ed6\u5728\u6cb3\u8fb9\u7761\u7740\uff0c \u6cb3\u6c34\u7684\u58f0\u97f3\u4e0e\u4ed6\u68a6\u5883\u7684\u58f0\u97f3\u6df7\u5408\u5728\u4e00\u8d77\u3002\u8fd9\u4e09\u9996\u6b4c\u90fd\u8d5e\u7f8e\u4e86\u9e1f\u7c7b\u7684\u7f8e\u4e3d\u548c\u5b83\u4eec\u6fc0\u53d1\u6211\u4eec\u7684\u89c6\u89c9\uff0c\u60c5\u611f\u548c\u8bb0\u5fc6\u7684\u80fd\u529b\u3002<\/p>\n<p><em><strong><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-633\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Bird.jpg?resize=810%2C953&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"810\" height=\"953\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Bird.jpg?resize=870%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 870w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Bird.jpg?resize=255%2C300&amp;ssl=1 255w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Bird.jpg?resize=768%2C904&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Bird.jpg?w=1700&amp;ssl=1 1700w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Bird.jpg?w=1620&amp;ssl=1 1620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 810px) 100vw, 810px\" \/><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bird Songs (2007-9) &#8220;Fifty-Nine Swans&#8221; (Yeats) &#8220;Black Rook in Rainy Weather&#8221; (Plath) &#8220;The Hierarchies of Sound&#8221; (Evans) I&#8217;ve uploaded 3 performances of my song cycle for mezzo and piano, &#8220;Bird Songs&#8221;. Each time working on this song cycle from scratch with a different singer was extraordinarily fun, and a tremendous challenge and learning experience.\u00a0 I&#8230;<span class=\"clearfix clearfix-post\"><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/?p=475\" class=\"more-link\">Continue Reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">&#8220;Bird Songs (2007-9) song cycle for mezzo-soprano and piano&#8221;<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[254,388,397,393,398,373,235,361,362,263,285,341],"class_list":["post-475","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1","tag-chamber-music","tag-composer-portrait-concert","tag-danae-eleni","tag-druskomanija","tag-julija-karaliunaite","tag-links-audio","tag-links-video","tag-lithuania","tag-lucy-williams","tag-performance","tag-piano","tag-vocal"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/475","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=475"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/475\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":766,"href":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/475\/revisions\/766"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=475"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=475"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georgehollowaycomposer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=475"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}