Moth Requiem

Product Description 2014 heralds the composer Harrison Birtwistle's 80th year. He remains one of the most popular voices in contemporary composition in the UK and beyond. This new collection of premiere recordings draws together recent commissions with older works to mark the occasion, with characteristically flawless performances from the BBC Singers under Nicholas Kok. They are joined on this disc by the Nash Ensemble and baritone Roderick Williams. Review This fourth of Signum's series of composer-led releases with exquisite performances by the BBC Singers is perfectly timed to coincide with Harrison Birtwistle's 80th year. Though a mixture of recent and older compositions, this is a premiere recording for all works on the disc. --Wholenote, April 2014 Poignancy and a haunting reflective quality lie at the heart of this collection of choral works by Birtwistle--and important 80th birthday celebration of one of our most significant composers. --Gramophone Editor's Choice May 2014 When Birtwistle introduced the UK premiere of The Moth Requiem at a 2013 Prom, he intially engaged his audience by suggesting that our negative view of moths was conditioned by the havoc they wreak on our precious cashmere garments. Maybe we should consider the message herein. The Moth Requiem is a Requiem to nature in peril and our own wider commemoration of loved ones lost. This poignant piece engages our full attention for its relatively brief running time. --Gramophone New York Times, Classical Best of 2014: Harrison Birtwistle turned 80 this year, and the flawless BBC Singers celebrated with this collection of premieres spanning half a century. "The Moth Requiem" (2012), the newest work here, hauntingly apes the sound and motion of a moth trapped in a piano, and dwells on how to mark and remember loss. --David Allen, New York Times