If: Michael Nyman, Henry Purcell Iestyn Davies & Fretwork

• Michael Nyman (b. 1944): No Time in Eternity:
• 1 No Time in Eternity: I. To Music (I) 02:14
• 2 No Time in Eternity: II. No Time in Eternity 00:49
• 3 No Time in Eternity: III. Fortune 01:02
• 4 No Time in Eternity: IV. The Definition of Beauty 00:54
• 5 No Time in Eternity: V. Things Mortal Still Mutable 01:25
• 6 No Time in Eternity: VI. The Watch 01:57
• 7 No Time in Eternity: VII. To Music (II) 02:29
• Michael Nyman:
• 8 Balancing the Books (arr. Richard Boothby) 09:49
• The Diary of Anne Frank (arr. Richard Boothby):
• 9 The Diary of Anne Frank (arr. Richard Boothby): If 03:31
• 10 The Diary of Anne Frank (arr. Richard Boothby): Why 04:19
• Henry Purcell (1659 - 1695): Oedipus, Z.583 (arr. Richard Boothby):
• 11 Oedipus, Z.583 (arr. Richard Boothby): II. Music for a While 03:52
• Michael Nyman:
• 12 Music After a While 11:51
• Henry Purcell:
• 13 Evening Hymn, Z.193 (arr. Silas Wolston) 04:51
• Michael Nyman:
• 14 The Self-Laudatory Hymn of Inanna and her Omnipotence 13:17
• Henry Purcell:
• 15 O Solitude, my Sweetest Choice, Z.406 (arr. Richard Boothby) 05:20
• Total Runtime 01:07:40

Info for If: Michael Nyman, Henry Purcell

Faible für den Countertenor: Diesen Monat feiert mit Michael Nyman einer der bekanntesten Vertreter der Minimal Music (ein Begriff, den er übrigens selbst geprägt hat) den 75. Geburtstag. Ein breites Publikum dürfte Nyman als Komponist des Soundtracks zu Das Piano von Jane Campion kennen, doch begann sein Durchbruch mit Musik zu Filmen von Peter Greenaway, von denen The Draughtsman’s Contract (Der Kontrakt des Zeichners) von 1982 und Drowning by Numbers (Verschwörung der Frauen) von 1988 die bekanntesten sein dürften. Gerade in diesen frühen Werken kombiniert Nyman gerne musikgeschichtliche Zitate mit avantgardistischen Formen und einer Eingängigkeit, die man sonst nur aus der Popmusik kennt. Indem sie einerseits intelligent mit der Tradition spielt, aber andererseits auf atonale Härten verzichtet, entfaltet diese Tonkunst für heterogene Hörerschichten ihren Reiz.

Vor seiner Hinwendung zum Komponieren war Nyman auch musikwissenschaftlich tätig und besorgte beispielsweise eine moderne Ausgabe der Catches von Henry Purcell. Die besondere Äffinität zu diesem Barockmeister schlug sich auch in der Musik zu The Draughtsman’s Contract nieder, die größtenteils auf Grounds von Purcell basiert. Insofern ist es nur konsequent, auf dieser Produktion Werke der beiden englischen Komponisten miteinander zu kombinieren, zumal beide einen besondere Affinität zur Stimmlage von Iestyn Davies teilen. Der vorzügliche und vielfach ausgezeichnete Countertenor und das bekannte Gambenconsort Fretwork stellen hier frühe und späte (Vokal-)Werke Nymans vor. Darunter die Self-laudatory hymn of Inanna and her omnipotence auf einen antiken sumerischen Text, die 1992 für James Bowman und Fretwork entstand oder Music after a while, eine Auftragskomposition des Ensembles aus dem Jahr 2017. Diese nimmt Bezug auf Purcells berühmtes Lied Music for a while, das hier mit anderen bekannten Vokalwerken des Komponisten in Bearbeitungen für Stimme und Gambenconsort zu hören ist.

Iestyn Davies, Countertenor
Ensemble Fretwork

Iestyn Davies
is a British countertenor widely recognised as one of the world’s finest singers celebrated for the beauty and technical dexterity of his voice and intelligent musicianship. Critical recognition of Iestyn’s work can be seen in two Gramophone Awards, a Grammy Award, a RPS Award for Young Singer of the Year, the Critics’ Circle Award and recently an Olivier Award Nomination. He was awarded the MBE in the Queen's New Year's Honours List 2017 for services to music.

Although blessed with a Welsh name, Iestyn hails from York, born into a musical household, his father being the founding cellist of the Fitzwilliam String Quartet.

He began his singing life as a chorister at St John’s College, Cambridge under the direction of Dr.George Guest and later Christopher Robinson.

Later, after graduating in Archaeology and Anthropology from St John’s College, Cambridge Iestyn studied at the Royal Academy of Music, London of which he is now a Fellow.

In 2015 he delighted London theatre audiences singing the role of Farinelli in the play, Farinelli and the King with Mark Rylance at the Globe Theatre. The hugely successful project transferred to the West End this season and was nominated for a number of Olivier Awards.

His operatic engagements have included Ottone (L’incoronazione di Poppea/Monteverdi) for Zürich Opera and Glyndebourne Festival Opera; Arsace (Partenope/Handel) for New York City Opera; Oberon (A Midsummer Night’s Dream/Britten) for Houston Grand Opera, English National Opera and The Metropolitan Opera, New York; Apollo (Death in Venice/Britten) for English National Opera and in his house debut at La Scala, Milan; Hamor (Jephtha/Handel) for Welsh National Opera and Opera National de Bordeaux; Steffani’s Niobe at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; his debut at The Metropolitan Opera Unulfo (Rodelinda/Handel) where he has also appeared as Trinculo The Tempest; the Lyric Opera of Chicago in Rinaldo; Bertarido Rodelinda for English National Opera; his debuts at the Opéra Comique and the Munich and Vienna Festivals in George Benjamin's Written on Skin and the title role Rinaldo for Glyndebourne Festival Opera. He returned to Glyndebourne in 2015 for David in Handel’s Saul.

His concert engagements have included performances at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan with Dudamel, the Concertgebouw and Tonhalle with Koopman and at the Barbican, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Lincoln Centre and at the BBC Proms in the Royal Albert Hall with orchestras that include the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic, Britten Sinfonia, Concerto Köln, Concerto Copenhagen, Ensemble Matheus, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Academy of Ancient Music and Scottish Chamber Orchestra. He recently made his debut, in recital, at Carnegie Hall, New York. He enjoys a successful relationship with the Wigmore Hall, where, in the 2012/13 season, he curated his own residency.

Recent highlights have included two Bach recitals at the Edinburgh International Festival, Britten's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' at the Aldeburgh Festival and Schubert's 'Die Schöne Müllerin' with Julius Drake at Middle Temple Hall, London. Future plans include Thomas Adès's "The Exterminating Angel' at the Metropolitan Opera New York and Farinelli & the King with Mark Rylance on Broadway, New York.

His recordings include two versions of Handel’s Messiah (New College Oxford, AAM/Naxos) and (Polyphony, Britten Sinfonia/Hyperion), Handel’s Chandos Anthems on Hyperion, Handel’s Flavio for Chandos with The Early Opera Company and Christian Curnyn, Bach’s Easter Oratorio with Retrospect Ensemble, his debut solo recording Live at the Wigmore Hall with his own Ensemble Guadagni, a disc of Porpora Cantatas with Jonathan Cohen and Arcangelo, an award winning disc of works for Guadagni for Hyperion and a disc of Handel arias with The King’s Consort for Vivat. 2014/5 saw the release of The Art of Melancholy, a recital of Dowland songs for Hyperion, Flow my tears, songs for lute, viol and voice on the Wigmore Live label and Arise my muse for which he received the Gramophone Recital Award. He has added recordings of Bach Cantatas with Arcangelo, Faure Songs with Malcolm Martineau andlooks forward to the release of Bach's Magnificat and B Minor Mass in the coming months both for Hyperion.

He is the recipient of the 2010 Royal Philharmonic Young Artist of the Year Award, the 2012 & 2014 Gramophone Recital Award, the 2013 Critics’ Circle Awards for Exceptional Young Talent (Singer).

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