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DYSON, Peter – Shadows (2002) – 8 CELLOS

Other Identification:
– SELECTED WRITINGS FROM THE COMPOSER –

“It is not possible to have shadows without a source of light: the brighter the sunshine, the stronger the shadow: the low angle of the strong clear summer evening sunlight produces a forest landscape of many moods and shades of colour. The forest pictures of Kuinji describe precisely what excites me; the strong sun illuminates the silver birches and pines, creating scenes of incredible beauty and subtlety. Light has been brought into the hidden places and we see clearly all the shadows.

Among the pines at Levashovo where the victims of repression were secretly buried, individual and collective memorials have appeared. This hidden place, on the outskirts of the village that lies to the North of St Petersburg has revealed its secrets.

The first step in the process of healing is to remember. 46,771 people were executed locally during The Repression (1934 till 1954). They lie buried at Levashovo and also on the artillery range at Toksovo where a new burial site was discovered in August 2002. There are Russians, Belorussians, Ukrainians, Estonians, Latvians, Lithuanians, Poles, and Germans; 40,485 executed without trial with a single bullet in the back of the head.”

Movements or sections:
Again, from the composer himself:
“I have written a piece full of shadows. Patterns and phrases shadow themselves and reappear growing and developing as the light changes There are hints of half remembered tunes and motifs and the mood grows optimistic. The final bar contains a warning that the shadows continue to lurk.”

Instrumentation: OCTET OF EIGHT CELLOS
An original work by Peter Dyson

Downloads of 2 PDFs:
[1 – General Score
[2 – All individual parts

Approximate difficulty: MEDIUM
With a contemporary style

Dedicatee of this presentation (if applicable):
‘Shadows’ was written at the request of Natalia Timofeeva, cellist in the Murmansk State Chamber Orchestra, who asked for a piece for eight cellos, not knowing what the consequence would be.

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