I am delighted to have received a commission to set three poems by Edward Thomas as part of a project centred on ‘The Dymock Poets’. Hereford Chamber Choir (Dir. Simon Harper) have commissioned new choral settings of poems by Edward Thomas, Robert Frost, John Drinkwater and Wilfrid Gibson from composers Liz Dilnot Johnson, Kerensa Briggs, Fraz Ireland, Susie Self, Esther Kay, Simon Penberdy and myself. All these new settings and more will be premiered by the fantastic HCC on Saturday 8th July as part of the 2023 Ledbury Poetry Festival, and then again at the 2024 Three Choirs Festival in Worcester.
The project is particularly close to my heart as I grew up in Dymock and have a deep connection to the area, as well as a longstanding love for the poetry of Edward Thomas in particular. Although I feel his poetry often resists the idea of music, there are exceptions, and I have chosen three Thomas poems to set for unaccompanied SATB choir (Will you come? / Interval / The Lofty Sky). I will also be giving a talk on my approach to setting Thomas in June entitled ‘The sound of sense and the sense of sound – a compositional approach to setting the poetry of Edward Thomas’.
I am well underway with the settings and looking forward to the premiere, and to working with HCC and Simon again following their wonderful performance of my Two Souls at last years Three Choirs Festival.
Considering the group of composers involved I’m sure this will be an extremely exciting project. More anon!…