Sinfonia Cymru team up with innovative soloist Sean Shibe in an energy-packed programme celebrating the versatility and future of the guitar, with music by living composers from the UK and USA. Technology and momentum are a common thread throughout this evening’s pieces, from the iconic minimalism of Steve Reich to Julia Wolfe’s Reeling - an infectious work for ensemble and tape. A surreal jigsaw of found sound interacts with string quartet in Pamela Z’s Ethel Dreams of Temporal Disturbances. A futuristic New York is conjured up in Change by Judd Greenstein and Laura Snowden’s Into the Light explores the freedom and danger of bird migrations.
Sinfonia Cymru perform selections from two evocative film scores by Philip Glass and Jonny Greenwood. And the concert culminates with the broadcast premiere of Chorus in Alto, a new concerto written especially for Sean Shibe by Welsh composer David John Roche - an expressive and technical showcase spanning styles from metal to classical, which he describes as his love letter to the guitar. Recorded on 25th February 2024 at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff.
Steve Reich: Duet
Laura Snowden: Into the Light
Julia Wolfe: Reeling
Pamela Z: Ethel Dreams of Temporal Disturbances
Judd Greenstein: Change
Freya Waley-Cohen: Amulet for Guitar
Philip Glass arr. David John Roche: Selections from "The Truman Show"
Jonny Greenwood: Themes from "There Will Be Blood”
David John Roche: Chorus in Alto (broadcast premiere)