Featuring works spanning nearly fifty years of Nicola LeFanu’s prolific career, this new recording from Divine Art Records showcases a harmonious blend of vocal and chamber compositions, including a timeless gem from the ensemble’s longstanding collaboration with LeFanu dating back to the 1970s.
Gemini, one of Britain’s most distinguished ensembles specialising in new music, has consistently showcased a richly varied repertoire spanning multiple musical eras and genres since their conception in 1974. This latest recording celebrates just a corner of LeFanu’s diverse musical output.
The Same Day Dawns (1974)
A mesmerizing composition scored for soprano and five instruments, incorporating verses from poems in Tamil, Chinese, Japanese, Kannada, and Akkadian.
Sextet (1996)
An evocative piece inspired by the untamed beauty of Irish landscapes, capturing the essence of Roundstone bog, the Connemara coast, and the wild flowers at Kilbaha in Co. Clare.
The Moth-Ghost (2020)
A dramatic scena for soprano and piano, narrating the poignant tale of Thetis, a sea-goddess from Greek mythology, mourning the loss of her son Achilles in the Trojan war.
Piano Trio (2003)
A lyrical masterpiece, seamlessly woven into a single movement, exploring melodic and rhythmic transformations, characteristic harmonies, and unifying resonances.
The record has received conclusively outstanding reviews.
The British Music Society
“The performances and the recording is of the highest quality and the composer must have been thrilled. If you don’t know Lefanu’s music this would be a good place to begin.” — Gary Higginson
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The Quarterly Review
“…music that lives in its own fleeting dimension, and which is superbly recorded in glowing detail.” — Stuart Millson
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Gramophone
“Gemini’s playing is admirable individually and collectively throughout, abetted by sound of unsparing focus, with detailed notes by the composer and Ian Mitchell. Those who acquired NMC’s release of LeFanu’s orchestral works (11/20) should make this their next port of call.” — Richard Whitehouse (April 2024 Gramophone Editor's Choice)
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Find out more and buy the album here.
