So, I am Shouting
for violin
Composed for Claire Weatherhead
First performance: 6 Dec 2021
Performed at the ANAM Set Festival by
Claire Weatherhead (violin)
Program note:
A pandemic, lockdowns and feelings of unrest and agitation in society (for reasons extending beyond our immediate predicament) has galvanised my musically romantic inclinations; particularly forthright expression, concern for comprehensible melody, and awareness of the poignant bond between a performer and their instrument; things I now see in my heritage and in my future. Much of this is part of a strong desire to be heard, and this, though perennial for composers and performers, has been heightened in recent times. In my first meeting with Claire Weatherhead, it came up: quiet people; strong emotions; needing to shout sometimes.
When initially encountering Claire, she seems unobtrusive and softly-spoken, though it becomes clear that as a performer she is eager to emote, alarm, and become transfigured. This kind of artist I find irresistible, and I am so pleased to have written this music for Claire. I also dedicate this music to my late Grandmother, Doreen Dique, who I have previously commemorated much less than is just. The music also follows a theme of honouring remarkable women, one of whom is Claire, who will premiere it. The next piece I will compose, for Camille Barry, commissioned by the ABC, will be set to a theme about performers who are mothers, so I am happy to be inadvertently creating a sort of series with related ideas.
So, the music is about people whose astonishing inner strength and vitality is sometimes overlooked at the surface. These days, I pause a moment when I meet someone—especially a slightly-statured woman—to remind myself that this might be a person of prodigious courage. The title of the music is a quote from Clarice Lispector’s novel, The Hour of the Star.
About the composer:
Thomas Green has a reputation in Brisbane (Australia) as a versatile composer whose focus is finding a musical home between many and varied streams, often seamlessly melding classical and contemporary idioms. He is the recipient of various government grants, commissions and is a prize-winner in national composition competitions. He completed his PhD in 2016, and his music has been premiered around Australia and internationally, with performances in Italy, France, the US, the UK, Croatia and China in recent years. He has composed and arranged music for Sydney Symphony Orchestra (with Josh Pyke), The Australian String Quartet, Katie Noonan, Opera Qld, La Boite Theatre, Plexus (Melbourne), and the Brisbane-based organisations Collusion Music, Trichotomy, Trivium Ensemble, The Black Square Quartet and Argo. In 2017 he was commissioned by The Queensland Music Festival to write a concerto for Manu Delago and QYO. In 2018 his original dance music for Turbine, a show by Collusion, was toured in Brisbane and Shanghai, and in 2019 his music was featured on Katie Noonan’s AIR and ARIA-nominated album, The Glad Tomorrow. In 2021 he is collaborating with Katie Noonan again, writing music for AVÉ. He lectures in music theory at the Queensland Conservatorium.
More info: www.thomasgreencomposer.com