aLoneWorldEnds

< World Premiere > ELLIOTT CARTER : String Quartet No. 5 Tuesday 19 September, 1995 – De Singel, Antwerp, Belgium The Arditti Quartet “One of the fascinations of attending rehearsals of chamber music, when excellent players try out fragments of what they later will play in the ensemble, then play it, and then stop abruptly to discuss how to improve, is that this pattern is so similar to our inner experience of forming, ordering, focussing, and bringing to fruition — and then dismissing — our feelings and ideas. These patterns of human behavior form the basis of the 5th String Quartet. Its introduction presents the players, one by one, trying out fragments of later passages from one of the six short, contrasting ensemble movements, at the same time maintaining a dialogue with each other. Between each of the movements the players discuss in different ways what has been played and what will be played. In this score the matter of human cooperation with its many aspects of feeling and thought was a very important consideration.” – Elliott Carter

<World Premiere> JAMES MacMILLAN : Cum vidisset Jesus for unaccompanied SSAATTBB choir Saturday 15 September, 2012 University of Notre Dame, Indiana Notre Dame Festival Chorus, cond. Carmen-Helena Téllez Boosey & Hawkes, Ltd., 2013 (BH12636)

< World Premiere > ANTONIO NEGRI : Symbolum Apostolorum (for unaccompanied SATB-SATB choir) Friday 14 September, 2012 Basilica Di San Pietro, Perugia, Italy St. Jacob's Chamber Choir, dir. Gary Graden Schott Music GbmH & Co., 2014 (ED 21884)

Rules By Which a Great Republic Can Be Reduced to A Third Rate Power Humbly Submitted for the Consideration of Those in Authority, That They May With Greater Speed and Certainty Accomplish the Same M. Jenkins Saturday 9 August, 2025 To the Esteemed Custodians of Our National Fortune, It has come to my humble observation that the conduct of a great state, if managed with sufficient art, may soon convert it into one of lesser station. For the benefit of those in high office, whose burdens I know to be heavy and whose wisdom, though profound, might yet be enriched by the counsels of a plain citizen, I here submit certain maxims which, if faithfully followed, will infallibly accomplish the object of diminishing the power, prosperity, and respect of our Republic. Let no one suspect me of insincerity; my sole aim is to aid the present administration in achieving what, by appearances, is already its noble endeavor. Rule I. Appoint to the highest offices those least acquainted with the duties thereof, and most disposed to serve their own interest above that of the public. In this way shall you secure both incompetence and avarice, those twin pillars upon which all declining states are founded. Rule II. When the people do complain, assure them you have heard their cries most tenderly; then proceed without alteration of policy. A show of listening, unaccompanied by the burden of reform, is ever the most agreeable course for those in conmand. Rule III. Tax the people variously and without clear explanation, assuring them that such levies are indispensable for their own benefit; yet see to it that the proceeds be expended upon projects of distant or doubtful utility. The more obscure the benefit, the less they can demand its proof. Rule IV. Maintain a constant enmity between factions of the populace. Encourage each to believe the other is the very root of the nation's decay. Such division will ensure the people's fury is ever turned upon their neighbor, never upon their governors. Rule V. Treat allies with alternations of fawning flattery and casual insult, that none may be certain of your friendship; and in foreign ventures, promise both everything and nothing, that all may be equally dissatisfied. Rule VI. In matters of law, enforce it strictly upon those without means, and with great leniency upon those possessed of influence. This will teach the citizenry that justice is not a right, but a privilege bestowed at the pleasure of their rulers. Rule VII. When disaster befalls any portion of the land, make long speeches upon unity and relief; then distribute aid with such delay and complication as to ensure maximum despair before its arrival. Rule VIII. Ever praise transparency whilst obscuring the workings of government behind committees, closed-door councils, and the labyrinth of administrative delay. Let every citizen know that information is both their right and their impossibility. Rule IX. In all public communications, employ many words and say little. Let proclamations be so adorned with empty phrases that the people may debate endlessly what they mean, and thus forget to inquire whether they were fulfilled. Rule X. If a measure be popular, delay its enactment until the people have quarreled amongst themselves over the particulars; if unpopular, enact it swiftly and in the dead of night, that opposition may be too late to rally. Rule XI. Reward loyalty not to the laws, but to the party; and make it known that advancement comes not through merit, but through service to the prevailing faction. Thus will you cultivate a court of flatterers in place of statesmen. Rule XII. Encourage in the citizenry a constant appetite for distraction, novelties, spectacles, and petty scandals, lest they look too long upon the state of their liberties. Rule XIII. Let the treasury be ever in debt, and speak gravely of fiscal prudence whilst increasing the expense. For nothing so weakens a people as the habit of paying for the present with the earnings of their posterity. Rule XIV. Allow no failure to pass without praise. Should a policy prove ruinous, declare it a stepping-stone to greater triumph. By such arts will you render truth malleable and memory short. Rule XV. When the people at last perceive the ruin and demand change, promise them reform, convene a commission, and appoint to it those whose chief talent lies in ensuring nothing is altered. — A Concluding Word to the People If in these Rules you perceive a likeness to the conduct of your own governors, be assured it is but coincidence; for no administration could be so artful as to follow them all without flaw. And if you should wish to preserve your liberties, you need only demand the opposite of each herein prescribed—though I fear such a course is far less agreeable to those entrusted with your welfare. Thus, dear countrymen, I place these humble suggestions before the public eye, that all may judge their merit, and perhaps admire the remarkable industry with which our leaders have set about perfecting them.

< World Premiere > LENNOX BERKELEY : Judica me, Op. 96 (for unaccompanied SSATBB choir) Saturday 2 September, 1978 - Worcester, England Festival Chorus, cond. Donald Hunt J. & W. Chester, 1978 ( CH55166)

< World Premiere > WOLFGANG STEFFEN : Tagnachtlied, Op. 50 (for unaccompanied SSAATTBB choir) Saturday 1 September, 1979 – Berlin RIAS Kammerchor, dir. Uwe Gronostay Text: Lothar Klünner B. Scott's Söhne, Mainz, 1980 (ED44818)

“Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC Wednesday 28 August, 1963 https://www.AmericanRhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm

< World Premiere > JAMES MacMILLAN : The Confession of Isobel Gowdie Wednesday 22 August, 1990 – Royal Albert Hall, London BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, cond. Jerzy Maksymiuk Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers Ltd., 1992

< World Premiere > ERKKI-SVEN TÜÜR : Canticum Canticorum Caritatis (for unaccompanied div. SATB choir) Saturday 8 August, 2020 – Kärdla Church, Kärdla, Estonia Collegium Musicale, cond. Endrik Üksvärav Edition Peters, 2020 (EP 14550)

< World Premiere > JAMES MacMILLAN : Sun Dogs (for unaccompanied SSAATTBB div. choir) Sunday 6 August, 2006 – Auer Hall, Bloomington, Indiana Indiana University Contemporary Vocal Ensemble, cond. Carmen Téllez Text : Michael Symmons Roberts, Roman Missal, English Trad. Boosey & Hawkes Ltd., 2011 (BH12221)

Montgomery Riverboat Dock – Saturday 5 August, 2023 🧢🪑

< World Premiere > KALEVI AHO : Symphony No. 8 for Organ & Orchestra Thursday 4 August, 1994 – Lahti, Finland (Lahti International Organ Week) Lahti Symphony Orchestra, cond. Osmo Vänskä Hans-Ola Ericsson, Organ solo

< World Premiere > THIERRY PÉCOU : Le Visage, le Cœur (Concerto for Piano & Mixed Choir) Sunday 28 July, 2013 – La Roque d'Anthéron, France (Festival de La Roque d'Anthéron) Chœur de Chambre Les Éléments, cond. Joël Suhubiète Alexandre Tharaud, Piano solo Schott Music, 2012 “This concerto for piano and choir without orchestra takes its inspiration from Mexican seals made in the pre-Hispanic era. The song celebrates friendship, and a mix of joy and trepidation arising from contemplation of the beauty and transience of life. The corresponding Nahuan expression ’Le visage, le cœur’ ('The face, the heart') describes the external and internal form of an individual. Stanzas are alternated with commentary, creating a universe characterised by the ‘ontological pessimism’ of the Aztecs, their propensity for heightened emotion, and their intense experiences of particular moments in time.” — Thierry Pécou

ERNST PEPPING : Bei Tag und Nacht (for unaccompanied SATB choir) Sunday 28 July, 1946 (Gesamtwerk) - Leipzig Leipziger Universitätschor, Dir. Friedrich Rabenschlag Schott Music, 1942 (Ed3910)

< World Premiere > ELLIOTT CARTER : Mad Regales (for unaccompanied SMATBarB soli) Tuesday 22 July, 2008 Tanglewood Music Center, Lennox, MA Texts : John Ashbery Hendon Music - Boosey & Hawkes, 2008

< World Premiere > ERNST PEPPING : Heut und Ewig. Liederkreis für Chor nach Gedichten von Goethe (for unaccompanied SSAATTBB choir) Saturday 16 July, 1949 – Berlin Spandauer Kantorei, cond. Gottfried Grote Texts : Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) Bärenreiter Verlag, 1949 (BA2269)

< World Premiere > NICHOLAS MAW : Life Studies Monday 9 July, 1973 – Cheltenham Town Hall, England Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, cond. Neville Marriner Boosey & Hawkes, Ltd. 1977 (BH-6084)

... “At a time like this, scorching irony, not convincing argument, is needed. O! had I the ability, and could I reach the nation’s ear, I would, to-day, pour out a fiery stream of biting ridicule, blasting reproach, withering sarcasm, and stern rebuke. For it is not light that is needed, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake. The feeling of the nation must be quickened; the conscience of the nation must be roused; the propriety of the nation must be startled; the hypocrisy of the nation must be exposed; and its crimes against God and man must be proclaimed and denounced. What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July? I answer: a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. To him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciations of tyrants, brass fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious parade, and solemnity, are, to him, mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy — a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices, more shocking and bloody, than are the people of these United States, at this very hour. Go where you may, search where you will, roam through all the monarchies and despotisms of the old world, travel through South America, search out every abuse, and when you have found the last, lay your facts by the side of the everyday practices of this nation, and you will say with me, that, for revolting barbarity and shameless hypocrisy, America reigns without a rival.” "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July" Frederick Douglass, Monday 5 July, 1852 Rochester Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Association, Rochester, NY

< World Premiere > FRANCIS GRIER : Missa Trinitatis Sanctae (for unaccompanied SSAATTBB choir) Sunday 30 June, 1991 – Westminster Abbey, London Choir of Westminster Abbey, cond. Martin Neary

< World Premiere > JAMES MacMILLAN : Mass of St. Edward the Confessor (for unaccompanied SSAATTBB choir) Wednesday 29 June, 2022 – Westminster Abbey, London Choir of Westminster Abbey, cond. James O'Donnell Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers Ltd., 2021 (BH20137)