Requiem

Gavin Bryars is working with choreographer David Dawson on a large scale ballet for the Dutch National Ballet  called Requiem, which will involve full orchestra, chorus and vocal soloists. David made his ballet Reverence when he was resident choreographer in Dresden using Gavin's Third String Quartet, subsequently rearranged for string orchestra. Gavin and David later made a new work together for the Flanders Ballet in Antwerp - Third Lght - for which the  music was a kind of violin concerto using a solo violin and string orchestra with no other violins - just violas downwards.

Biped

Biped is one of the most successful dance works created by Merce Cunningham, with music by Gavin Bryars and design by Paul Kaiser and Shelly Eshkar. After Merce's death in 2009 the company continued to tour the work, along with other works in the repertoire, until the end of 2011.

Biped was subsequently licensed to the Bavarian State Ballet, who gave many performances in Munich, as well as one in Rouen. For all these performances the music was played live, as are the new performances with Angers. Its artistic director is Robert Swinston, one of Cunningham's principle dancers for many years, and subsequently Merce's assistant. The musicians are: Gavin Bryars, keyboard/bass; James Woodrow, electric guitar; Audrey Riley, cello; Katie Wilkinson, viola.

The work is now licensed to the National Dance Company of Angers, France. As with all the licensed performances, the dance is directed by Robert Swinston, long time associate of Merce.

Biped will be performed along with Merce's work Beach Birds, with music by John Cage, played by the same musicians.

The Crossing: A Native Hill

Following from the huge success of The Fifth Century, written for The Crossing and Prism Saxophone Quartet, which won a Grammy for Best Choral performance in Jan uary 2018, Gavin has written a nsubstantial new a capella, work that builds on the considerable experience that he has of working with the choir, and the many close personal friendships within it. For this he has set text from the American writer Wendell Berry's early essay A Native Hill (1968). Berry, now in his eighties, has written a great deal - poetry, essays, novels - from the perspective of his life as a farmer in rural Kentucky, where he has lived and worked for over 50 years. He is one of the world's finest writers, and perhaps because of his apparent isolation has been called a "modern-day Thoreau" and certainly his work is as politically charged as that of his 19th century predecessor. Gavin decided to set prose texts rather than the poetry, although, like Thomas Traherne who was the writer used for The Fifth Century, this "prose" has great poetic beauty.

It is dedicated to "The Crossing, and my friends within."

Church of the Holy Trinity Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia, The Crossing's "Friday night, 2 weeks before Christmas" concert December 14 at 8pm.  Sunday December 16 at 5pm at Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill, The Crossing's "Home Church." 

GB Ensemble at NCH Ireland

This is the first time that Gavin has performed at the National Concert Hall in Dublin, although he has performed elsewhere in ireland over the last 15 years. The day before this concert he wil perform in Cork. It was the Programme Director of NCH, Gary Sheehan, who had brought Gavin to Ireland for the first time when he performed the Eight Irish Madrigals at Christchurch Cathedral, Dublin - and this was where Gavin met his friend and musical collaborator Iarla O'Lionaird for the first time. The programme includes ensemble versions of the two earliest "iconic" works from Gavin's repertoire as well as more recent works. He is joined by members of the Crash Ensemble.

Programme

The Sinking of the Titanic (40’) - plus all extra players

Winestead (20’)

interval

The North Shore (12’) - plus extra viola, bass, bass clarinet/clarinet, percussion
The Flower of Friendship (13’)
Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet (25’) - plus all extra players

Performers: John Potter, tenor; James Woodrow, electric guitar; Morgan Goff, viola; Nick Cooper, cello; Gavin Bryars, organ, double bass and piano (North Shore) (+Aoife Burke, cello, from Cork for Jesus' Blood) (+ members of the Crash Ensemble)

Bob Burnell, sound