Andrew Webb-Mitchell’s Dances of Life and Death
Andrew Webb-Mitchell, Artistic Director UIC Sinfonia and Chorus and Lecturer at UIC’s General Education Office, will be one of the featured composers at the 2014 Beijing Modern Music Festival.
The Closing Gala of the one-week Beijing Modern Music Festival in May will include the world and Beijing premiere performances of Mr Webb-Mitchell’s works. His two songs are chosen to be performed at the finale, following performances of works by many leading Chinese and international composers from Russia, Canada, the US, the UK and elsewhere.
His songs, Dances of Life and Death and The Inspiration of Night are drawn from the composer’s symphonic song cycle, Songs of Awe and Wonder, with words by British poet Joanna Boulter. They will be performed on 22 May at the Beijing Concert Hall by Chinese soprano Ruan Yu Qun with the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra conducted by Hu Yong Yan.
Andrew Webb-Mitchell
Outstanding British violinist Tasmin Little praised Mr Webb-Mitchell’s symphonic song cycle as “music full of passion and heroism, with a glorious harmony and beautiful textures”. The composer describes the work as being written “in a direct and lyrical musical language – contemporary in style, yet filled with references to the past”, and being “a powerful and emotional piece, striking in its simplicity yet rich in raw emotion”.
The 2014 Beijing Modern Music Festival will take place from 16 to 22 May, supported by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Culture in China. The Festival is regarded as an influential modern musical event in China and one of the most important modern music festivals in the world.
Editor: Deen He
(from MPRO, with special thanks to the ELC)
Sources from Andrew Webb-Mitchell’s website
