Ivan Moody
News
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page is no longer being kept up-to-date.
For details of performances, please see Calendar
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New!………Newly completed choral
works.
Just
completed are two works for the Scottish choir Cappella Nova, He Who Clothed
Himself in Light and Aurora radius, which will receive their
premières in the 2005-2006 season (see www.cappella-nova.com), and O Viridissima
Virga, a setting of words by Hildegard of Bingen for the St Louis Chamber Chorus, to be premiered in
December 2004. For further information,
see www.chamberchorus.org
09/2004
New!………Première of Piano Concerto Linnunlaulu.
A major world première will take place at
the Mafra Festival in
09/2004
New!………Italian performances.
Crocifissione, for voices and brass, commissioned by the
Antidogma Festival for performance by the DolciAure Consort of Turin, received its première on
06/2004
New!………Dormition of the Virgin at the
The Dormition of the Virgin, a large-scale cantata commissioned by
the BBC for soloists, choir and instrumental ensemble, was premiered to
prolonged applause by the BBC Singers and St James Baroque under the direction
of Stephen Layton at the Temple Church, London, on 21st May, 2004
(the work was also recorded by the BBC for future broadcast), following a
monographic concert given to celebrate the composer’s 40th birthday
at Christchurch Cathedral, Oxford, on the preceding day
05/2004
………Cappella Romana performs music by
Ivan Moody at the Byzantine Festival.
This
year’s Byzantine Festival, which takes place in
02/2004
………………i.classics.com interview with Ivan Moody.
Trio Mediaeval’s new ECM recording was the occasion for an interview with both the singers and Ivan Moody, available online at:
http://www.iclassics.com/homepage.jsp/iclassics/feature.jsp?featureId=1091
A
previous iclassics.com feature on Ivan Moody, published at the time of the
release of the Gothic Records double CD of the Akáthistos
Hymn, is now available on the composer’s website here.
02/2004
………………New ECM disc launched
in
Trio
Mediaeval’s second recording for ECM was launched in
The
catalogue number is ECM New Series 1869 4761241. Further information is obtainable from the
ECM website: http://www.ecmrecords.com and from the Trio
Mediaeval website: http://www.triomediaeval.no,
01/2004
……………North American premières.
Cappella Romana,
directed by Alexander Lingas, will give the North American premières of Make
ready, Bethlehem/Dormi Iesu
and The Prophecy of Symeon on 2 January, at St
Mary’s Cathedral,
12/2003
……………Isconsolada in
Following the
highly successful concerts by the Winterthur Vocal
Ensemble in May, two further performances of Isconsolada
(part of a programme centred around
http://winterthur-vokalensemble.ch.
10/2003
………………Theatre première in
October 9th
saw the first performance of the play Diálogos
das Compensadas, by the
innovative Portuguese theatre group Fatias de Cá, in the Castelo de São Jorge,
10/2003
New!………………Second Canadian
performance of Passion & Resurrection.
Following
the Canadian première in 2003 of Ivan Moody’s oratorio Passion &
Resurrection, the renowned ensemble Pro Coro
09/2003
………………Two new works.
Ivan Moody has
recently completed two substantial new works. One is a cantata commissioned by the
BBC Singers, entitled The Dormition of the Virgin.
Scored for three soloists, choir, two cornetts and
baroque strings (though it is also performable by trumpets and modern strings),
it will receive its première in early 2004. The other is a work for solo piano
and large chamber ensemble, commissioned by the Orchestrutópica,
to be given its premiere in
07/2003
………………A Lion’s Sleep: première and recording.
A Lion’s
Sleep
was given its world première by Trio Mediaeval on Friday 18th July in the
extraordinary acoustics of chapel of Trinity College, Cambridge, in the composer;s presence. It was part of a concert centred around Leonel Power’s Missa Alma Redemptoris
Mater and including other contemporary compositions. Both A Lion’s Sleep
and Troparion of Kassiani
have been recorded by Trio Mediaeval for their forthcoming disc on ECM, once
again produced by John Potter. The disc will be launched in early 2004: more
details will be published here as they become available. Trio Mediaeval’s website is http://www.triomediaeval.no.
07/2003.
……………… World première of A Lion’s Sleep.
The world
première of A Lion’s Sleep, setting a text by John of Euchaia in a magnificent translation by Elizabeth Barrett
Browning, will be given by Trio Mediaeval on Friday 18th July in the chapel of
Trinity College, Cambridge. The programme also includes the Missa
Alma Redemptoris Mater by Leonel
Power, and works by Oleg Garkavi,Gavin
Bryars, Andrew Smith and Piers Hellawell.
Trio Mediaeval’s website is http://www.triomediaeval.no.
07/2003.
……………… World première of Isconsolada
in
Sustained
applause greeted the world première of Isconsolada,
setting texts for Holy Week in Greek and Sardinian, was given by the Winterthur Vocal Ensemble, under the composer’s direction,
at the St Arbogastkirche in
06/2003.
………………World première of Canon for Theophany
in
Extended
applause greeted the world première of Canon for Theophany,
a thirty-five minute unaccompanied choral work, which took place at the Karelia Hall, Joensuu on 22nd
May, in the presence of His Eminence Leo, Archbishop of Karelia
and All Finland. The work was performed by the Orthodox Choir of the
05/2003.
………………Australian premières.
The Melbourne
Autumn Music Festival this year featured the Australian première of Pnevma on 2 May, performed by virtuoso recorder
player Genevieve Lacey and e21, directed by Stephen
Grant. The concert also featured music by Monteverdi,
05/2003.
……………… World première of Erimos
Erimos, for four female voices, will be given its world première
by the Scottish ensemble Canty on Friday 6 June, 2003
at Old St Paul's Episcopal Church in Edinburgh, as part of a programme centred
on ecological concerns, featuring both new music and old (in particular Hildegard
of Bingen). Erimos
is e Greek word meaning "desert" or "wilderness", and uses
texts from the Orthodox tradition in order to place modern ecological concerns
in a spiritual perspective. It will receive further performances on Saturday 7
June at St Salvador's Episcopal Church,
04/2003
……………… Canadian première of Passion & Resurrection
Ivan Moody’s
1992 oratorio Passion & Resurrection, one of his most
widely-performed works, will receive its Canadian première on Sunday, 13th
April at
04/2003
……………… Akáthistos Hymn released on CD
Ivan Moody’s
monumental setting of the Akáthistos Hymn has
been released as a double CD set by Gothic Records (http://www.gothicrecords.com/akhym2cds.html) The composer’s largest
work to date, this first setting of the entire Akáthistos
Hymn since the middle ages, was recorded by Cappella Romana
(for whom the work was written and who gave the world première) in Portland,
Oregon, USA in August 2002. The conductor was Alexander Lingas, founder and
director of Cappella Romana, and composer acted as
producer. For more information, please visit Cappella Romana’s
website: http://www.cappellaromana.org
"…a major
addition to the literature" (
03/2003
……………… Russian première of In Nomine
The renowned British
viol consort Fretwork will give the Russian première of In Nomine on 17th April in
In Nomine was written in February 1996 as a birthday present for
Fretwork on their 10th anniversary. It relates somewhat obliquely to the
English In nomine tradition in that it is not
built upon the chant of that name as set by John Taverner
in his Missa Gloria Tibi
Trinitas. Instead, it is constructed around a
Russian Znamenny chant for the same words (In
Slavonic: Blagosloven grady
vo imya
Gospodne. Osana v vyshnikh)
from the Orthodox Liturgy of St John Chrysostom. More
specifically, the piece relates to these words as sung on Palm Sunday, when the
entry of Christ into
The first
performance of In Nomine was given by Fretwork in Prokopi,
03/2003
………………
Pnevma, for solo recorder and string orchestra, will receive its
03/2003
……………… Première of Khárama.
Khárama, for solo piano, will be premièred by American pianist Mac
McClure in
03/2003
.…………… Forthcoming premières.
First
performances in the near future include Lament for Adam, written for the
male voices of the choir of the Russian Orthodox Cathedral of the Holy Virgin
Protection,
02/2003
……………… New commissions.
Recently
commissioned works include two large-scale cantatas. One is for the Portuguese
ensemble L’Antica Musica,
and will deal with the theme of the Annunciation, and the other is for the BBC
Singers. This will take as its subject the Dormition
of the Virgin, and will be scored for three soloists, choir and period
instruments. Both these works will receive their premières in the 2003-2004 season. Rather different is a
collaboration with the theatre group Fatias de
Cá. Ivan Moody is currently completing music for
their new production of the play Diálogos das Compensadas by João Aguiar, which will be
produced in the extraordinary space of the Lisbon Pantheon in late March.
02/2003
......................Canon
for Theophany in
The recently
completed Canon for Theophany, a thirty-minute
unaccompanied choral work, will be given its world première by the Orthodox
Choir of the University of Joensuu, under the
direction of the composer, on 22nd May 2003. The work will form part of a
concert featuring new music written for the Orthodox Church, largely in the
English language. Both this and Ivan Moody’s guest lecture constitute a major
part of the 15th anniversary celebrations of the Department of Orthodox Theology
of the Faculty of Theology.
02/2003
………………
Anghelu, for double-bass quartet, met with great
success at its
02/2003
......................
The outstanding
young Armenian ‘cellist Levon Mouradian
gave the Portuguese première of Epitaphios to
tremendous applause with the Lisbon Sinfonietta on
11/2002
......................New
works for
2003 will see
the première of the recently-completed Isconsolada,
setting texts for Holy Week in Greek and Sardinian, by the Winterthur
Vocal Ensemble, under the direction of the composer. The work will be given
first in
Also to be
premièred in 2003 are Lullaby for a Byzantine Princess, by Suzie Leblanc
and the Quatuor Alcan on
5th June as part of the New Music Series in
Other recent
works to be premièred in the 2002-2003 season include Chalice
of Wisdom, written for the German ensemble Amarcord,
The Blessed Among Women, Weeping, for Red Byrd, and A Lion’s Sleep,
Ivan Moody’s third work for the extraordinary Trio Mediaeval.
11-12/2002
......................"Moving
beauty and power": Acclaim for US tour of Passion & Resurrection
Passion and
Resurrection was featured in four concerts in the
Of the
For the full
reviews, click here. Cappella Romana’s
website is http://www.cappellaromana.org.
10/2002
......................Passion
& Resurrection: US Tour
Passion and
Resurrection, Ivan Moody’s 1992 oratorio, will be featured in four concerts in
the
Passion and
Resurrection, originally commissioned by the Tampere
Festival, has met with great acclaim at past performances in
Hyperion Records’ website is: http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk
09/2002
......................In
In
09/2002
......................Akathistos Hymn recorded
Ivan Moody’s
largest work to date, his setting of the entire Akathistos
Hymn (in English) was recorded on CD by Cappella Romana
(for whom the work was written and who gave the world première) in
"…a major
addition to the literature" (
09/2002
......................World
première of Lumière sans déclin
in Québec
Lumière sans déclin received its première on
The programme
also included works by Dunstable, Tallis, Byrd and
Purcell, The Defeat of Ferdiad by Elizabeth Liddle (1995/2002; Canadian première), Before Summer
Rain by Michael Oesterle (2002; Québec première),
Liebeslied by Rodney Sharman (2001/2002;
Québec première) and After Tallis by C. Scott Tresham (2001; Québec première).
08/2002
......................Two
angelic premières: Vigil of the Angels, Anghelu
The première of
Vigil of the Angels, for solo viola and string orchestra, met with a
rapturous reception on Friday 7th June in
06/2002
......................Akathistos recording in August
Ivan Moody’s
largest work to date, his setting of the entire Akathistos
Hymn, will be recorded on CD by Cappella Romana
(for whom the work was written and who gave the world première) in
06/2002
......................Award
for Supplication for Peace
Supplication for Peace, scored for TTBarBB,
has been awarded top honours in the male voice category by "Waging Peace
through Singing", based in
06/2002
......................Kassiani in
The Troparion of Kassiani, originally written for
Trio Mediaeval, received its North American première on
04/2002
......................New
additions to the catalogue
Amongst recently
completed works are three works for voices: The first is The Blessed Among
Women, Weeping (A Passion Carol), on a text by John of Euchaita
in a translation by Elizabeth Barrett Browning and a brief text from Orthodox
Matins of Holy Saturday, scored for TTBarB, to be
premiered by Red Byrd later in 2002. The second is Chalice of Wisdom,
dealing with the life of
03/2002
......................Words
of the Angel's continuing success
"Words of
the Angel" (ECM New Series 461 782-2) has been an end-of-the-year recommendation
of several important newspapers: in Germany, Die Zeit,
and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung,
in the Swiss Tages-Anzeiger and is, according
to the Brazilian magazine Clube do Audio
& Video, one of the Ten Best CDs of 2001. It was also an Editor's
Choice in the January 2002 issue of Gramophone. Michael Oliver, in
the February 2002 issue of International Record Review, wrote : "It is a tribute to Moody's piece, a
Resurrection motet with vivid effects of dazzling light, that it can follow these
pieces without anticlimax. An exceptionally coupling, finely and
atmospherically recorded."
01/2002
......................Third
CD recording of Canticum Canticorum
The Canadian ensemble Musica Intima, based in Vancouver, has recently made the third commercial CD recording of Canticum Canticorum I, on Atma Classique ACD2 2284. Details of the recording, which was released in early December 2001, may be obtained from the group's website: http://www.musicaintima.org
01/2002
......................Make
ready, Bethlehem/Dormi Iesu
première
Make ready,
Bethlehem/Dormi Iesu, which combines the texts
of the apolytikion of the Preparation of Nativity (in
English) and the anonymous Christmas carol Dormi
Iesu (in Latin) was given its first performance
with great success at the Church of St Andrews-by-the-Wardrobe, London, on
Wednesday 12th December, 2001 by the English Chamber Choir under the direction
of Guy Protheroe.
12/2001
......................Lamentations
of the Myrrhbearer première
Lamentations
of the Myrrhbearer, for string quartet, received its world
première at the Calouste Gulbenkian
Foundation,
12/2001
.....................Words
of the Angel CD Lisbon launch
On
12/2001
.....................Pravoslava Chamber Choir premieres Vecheri
Tvoeya
Vecheri Tvoeya, a setting of the
Communion Hymn for Holy Thursday, was given its première by the Pravoslava Chamber Choir, under the composer's direction,
at the Palácio Foz in
Lisbon on 13th November, 2001. The concert, which received a standing
ovation, also included works by Nikolsky, Chesnokov, Christov and
Rimsky-Korsakov, as well as chants from the Byzantine and Bulgarian traditions.
11/2001
.....................Words
of the Angel released on CD
The Norwegian
group Trio Mediaeval have recorded Words of the Angel, written for them
in 1998, for ECM. The disc was launched in
The
10/2001
......................Prophecy
of Symeon premiered in
The Grupo Vocal Olisipo gave the
world première of The Prophecy of Symeon,
written specially for them and commissioned by Porto European Capital of
Culture 2001 at the Convento de São
Bento,
09/2001
+++
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Revised 13.05.2005
© 2004 Ivan Moody