For the 60th anniversary season of the NTR ZaterdagMatinee composer Peter-Jan Wagemans was commissioned to write a thirty-minute piece for soprano solo, large choir and large symphony orchestra. This became the Carnival of Shades, but no sooner had Wagemans completed it than it was obvious that the Covid-19 pandemic made its performance impossible, which resulted in the composer and programmer looking for a solution together. This became a replacement new work for a smaller, corona-proof ensemble. On October 31, in honour of the 60th anniversary, the world premiere of Wagemans' Ombre/Marbre will be performed by the Netherlands Radio Choir and Radio Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by chief conductor Karina Canellakis.
Inspiration
The poem Je suis fait d'ombre et de marbre by Victor Hugo served as Wagemans’ source of inspiration. It represents the poet, but also the poem itself, as a spiral staircase. The staircase is like life itself: people ascend it when they are full of life, and descend it into death. Wagemans directly associates the image of the spiral staircase with the life cycles in the corona era, which nobody seems to be able to get a grip on. The new Ombre/Marbre can be seen as an expression of the staircase of life. Stylistically Peter-Jan Wagemans uses the mosaic form, with emphasis on timbres that shift between chromaticism and diatonics.
New CD release
Besides composing for the NTR ZaterdagMatinee, Wagemans also worked last year on recordings for a new CD that will soon be released by the German label Cybele Records. This portrait CD brings together the most recent ensemble works of Wagemans, and includes an extensive video interview.
Concerts:
The Netherlands Radio Choir and Radio Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by chief conductor Karina Canellakis.
31 oktober 2020, 13:00 - 14:00 – Het Concertgebouw, Amsterdam - SOLD OUT
31 oktober 2020, 15:15 – 16:15 – Het Concertgebouw, Amsterdam - SOLD OUT
More about Peter-Jan Wagemans:
https://www.deussmusic.com/componisten/Peter-JanWagemans
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