Audio Sample
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Performance by Jeanell Carrigan from the CD But I want the harmonica... |
CD
But I want the harmonica... : Australian post-1970 solo piano works.
Library shelf no. CD 471 [Available for loan]
Score
The piper at the gates of dawn : suite for piano solo / Wendy Hiscocks.
Library shelf no. 786.2185/HIS 1 [Not for loan]
Work Overview
Piper at the Gates of Dawn is a suite of four movements
and was inspired by a magical chapter from Kenneth Grahame's
The Wind in the Willows. In a scene far removed from the
antics of Mr Toad, two of the animal characters journey through a
summer night to the breaking of dawn, drawn on irresistibly by a
mysterious glad piping to a vision of Pan, protector of all wild
creatures. Prelude evokes twilight, punctuated by moths and
wheeling bats; Nocturne paints the river as the moon gradually
rises and sails overhead; Caprice brings first light, hints of a
morning breeze, and the mysterious piping. The Finale follows
Kenneth Grahame's closing poem, with the reeds' talk and the
carolling of the morning birds as accompaniment to the song
(whose words are not meant to be vocalised).
Caprice was the first movement of the suite completed in 1990.
The Prelude and Nocturne followed and were premièred at London's
1992 Spitalfields Festival. The 2003 version of the Finale
replaced an earlier version of 1995 which was less pianistic, and
this later version was first performed at the Elder
Conservatorium, Adelaide, as part of the Australasian Pedagogy
Conference on July 15, 2005.
Roy Howat both inspired and premièred all the movements of the
suite and the score is dedicated to him with admiration.
Work Details
Year: 1995
Instrumentation: Piano.
Duration: 12 min.
Difficulty: Advanced — L.Mus.A
Contents note: Prelude -- Nocturne -- Caprice -- Finale.
Dedication note: Dedicated to Roy Howat
First performance: by Roy Howat — 1992. London's 1992 Spitalfields Festival
Revised 2003
Subjects
- In the form/style of: Suites
- Inspired by: Literature & Poetry
Performances of this work
2 Sep 2018: at Hiscocks and Mo (Gerringong Town Hall). Featuring Wendy Hiscocks.
19 Aug 2018: at Hiscocks and Mo (St Jude's, Bowral). Featuring Wendy Hiscocks.
1992: London's 1992 Spitalfields Festival. Featuring Roy Howat.
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