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Work

Last poems : three songs on death and dying

by Becky Llewellyn (1990)

Score Sample

View a sample of the score of this work

Audio Sample

Performance by Charlotte Kelso, Suyeon Ro from the CD Selected Works by AMC Represented Artists, vol. 113.

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Selected Works by AMC Represented Artists, vol. 113.

Non-Commercial

This item is not commercially available from the Australian Music Centre. We regret that we cannot offer it for sale.

CD

Selected Works by AMC Represented Artists, vol. 113. / Works by Becky Llewellyn.

Version: This product features the Mezzo-Soprano with clarinet version of this work

Library shelf no. CD 3094 [Available for loan]

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Work Overview

Some people have such an intense presence when alive that to actively mourn/celebrate them when dead needs the most minimal musical forces. Becky wrote these three movements in 1990, during the AIDS epidemic before treatment options became available, when she heard conductor Stuart Challender was dying. For a man of the orchestra, the use of one string instrument seemed to convey the poignancy of the loss and the beauty of his life. The text, by D.H. Lawrence who was dying when he wrote this, is an affirmation of our humanity. The outer two movements are appropriate for funerals and memorial services for exceptional individuals and for musicians who are mourning.

"I was approached by the wonderful mezzo-soprano Lauris Elms, to re-cast my Last Poems work so she could play it with her daughter, clarinetist Deborah de Graaff. The combination of the voice and clarinet is equally as magnetic as that of the original voice and viola. The text by D.H. Lawrence comes alive in the combination. There are three songs in the series Last Poems: each could be done in recital or at a funeral/memorial service for an exceptional person."

Work Details

Year: 1990

Instrumentation: Mezzo-soprano, viola.

Duration: 11 min.

Difficulty: Advanced

Contents note: Song of death -- Shadows -- All Souls' Day.

Dedication note: Dedicated to Stuart Challender. Dedicated to a giant in Australian music, Stuart Challender.

First performance: by Charlotte Kelso, Suyeon Ro — 18 Feb 19. St Petrie's Lutheran Church, Nuriootpa, SA

Performances of this work

18 Feb 19: St Petrie's Lutheran Church, Nuriootpa, SA. Featuring Charlotte Kelso, Suyeon Ro.

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