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As a complement to EM Records’ disc of piano music by Andrew Downes, this release features the composer’s music for violin and viola, including World Première recordings of the Violin Sonata, the Viola Sonata, and the work from which the disc takes its title, ‘The God Marduk’. Downes was a student of Herbert Howells and his work is characterised by influences absorbed from a wide variety of musical cultures, including Indian rāgas, African drum-rhythms and Carolingian plainchant, these being fused to form a language that is rich in colour and vivid in the immediacy of its portrayals. This recording is a dramatic representation of Downes’s art, ranging from the gentle lyricism of the second movement of the Violin Sonata, through the playful whimsy and implacable sternness of ‘The God Marduk’, to the devotional stillness and joyful assurance of the ‘Sacred Mass’ for solo violin.
| Andrew Downes (b.1950) SONATA FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO, op.52 (1994) (World Première recording) |
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| 1. | I. Allegro appassionato |
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| 2. | II. Largo |
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| 3. | III. Allegro vivace – Adagio – Tempo primo |
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| 4. | POÈME: ‘THE GOD MARDUK’, op.72 (1999) (World Première recording) |
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| ‘SACRED MASS’ FOR SOLO VIOLIN, op.75 (2000) | |||
| 5. | I. KYRIE ELEISON. Adagio spirituale |
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| 6. | II. GLORIA IN EXCLESIS DEO. Allegro vivace |
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| 7. | III. CREDO IN UNUM DEUM. Andante spirituale |
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| 8. | IV. SANCTUS, DOMINUS DEUS SABAOTH. Allegro vivace |
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| 9. | V. BENEDICTUS. Andante moderato – Allegro vivace |
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| 10. | VI. AGNUS DEI. Adagio misterioso |
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| SONATA FOR VIOLA AND PIANO, op.68 (World Première recording) |
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| 11. | I. Allegro moderato e espressivo – Allegro vivace |
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| 12. | II. Allegro moderato |
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| 13. | III. Andante leggiero |
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EMR CD028 | INTERNATIONAL
RECORD REVIEW