The New Winter Songbook - for High Voice and Piano

A new collection of twenty-one art songs reflecting contemporary experiences of, and attitudes towards, the winter season from composers spanning a range of experiences and backgrounds. The New Winter Songbook album was commissioned by soprano Rebecca Lea and recorded with pianist Caroline Jaya-Ratnam on the Convivum label. Many, though not all, are settings of secular texts. While more traditional winter themes do recur within the songs-those of cold, loss, stillness, grief and darkness-those of belief, faith, and hope, offer an emotional counterbalance. Each individual composer approaches and explores these themes from their own perspective, lending their voice to a musical tapestry, expressing what it means to reflect upon and celebrate the season of winter today. CONTENTS: Jamie W. Hall: Dust of Snow · Errollyn Wallen: North · Judith Weir: On White Meadows · Ben Nobuto: Sundowning · Héloïse Werner: Winter Spell · Adam Gorb: Frost Fair · Eoghan Desmond: The Darkest Midnight · Jessia Dannheisser: Winter Fragments · Cecilia McDowall: Christmas Eve at Sea · Helen Neeves: Cradle Song · James Weeks: Natural State · Martin Bussey: Twelfth Night · Cheryl Frances-Hoad: The Core of Time · Peter Foggitt: Villanelle: New Year's Eve · Electra Perivolaris: Lethe - Oblivion · Michael Betteridge: Snow Day · David McGregor: Ariadne · Michael Csányi-Willis: Snowdrop · Sun Keting: The Nineteenth Night of December · Owain park: Winters Distant · Anita Datta: Seasonal Clothing