Ešenvalds - Stars

Writing to share this short gem of choral music by Latvian composer Ēriks Ešenvalds entitled Stars. I believe I first listened to this piece sophomore or junior year of high school.

One of the defining features of this piece is the choice instrumentation, which I quite enjoy listening to. The piece opens with the sound of water-tuned glasses and ends with Tibetan singing bowls joining the choir. The high-pitched ring and unique timbre of these instruments really complements the texture of the choir.

The performance above features the choral group Voces8 with SSAATTBB (two per part for soprano, alto, tenor, and bass); the crystalline transparency of their performance is awesome. I hope you enjoy listening!

Stars (lyrics)

Alone in the night
On a dark hill
With pines around me
Spicy and still

And a heaven full of stars
Over my head
White and topaz
And misty red;

Myriads with beating
Hearts of fire
The aeons
Cannot vex or tire;

Up the dome of heaven
Like a great hill
I watch them marching
Stately and still

And I know that I
Am honored to be
Witness
Of so much majesty

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Jenkins - Concerto grosso for strings 'Palladio' - I. Allegretto

The first movement, I. Allegretto, of Karl Jenkins's Concerto grosso for strings 'Palladio' is perhaps one of the most well-known pieces of modern classical music (imitating the Classical Period). Jenkins himself wrote a program note (1996), which I will quote from Boosey and Hawkes's website:

Palladio was inspired by the sixteenth-century Italian architect Andrea Palladio, whose work embodies the Renaissance celebration of harmony and order. Two of Palladio's hallmarks are mathematical harmony and architectural elements borrowed from classical antiquity, a philosophy which I feel reflects my own approach to composition. The first movement I adapted and used for the 'Shadows' A Diamond is Forever television commercial for a worldwide campaign. The middle movement I have since rearranged for two female voices and string orchestra, as heard in Cantus Insolitus from my work Songs of Sanctuary.

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