Songs of the Earth

‘Songs of the Earth’ is an innovative audiovisual synthesis of cutting-edge contemporary music and intensely beautiful natural images from the Isle of Skye, first performed in 2006 at the Gaelic college Sabhal Mòr Ostaig on Skye. In an intimate collaboration between the Scottish Clarinet Quartet and photographer Terry Williams, original music scored for four bass clarinets is performed live against large-screen projection of new photographic collections. At the musical core of this ambitious project are works commissioned by SCQ from Stephen Davismoon, David Fennessy, Sadie Harrison and Anna Meredith, funded by the Scottish Arts Council, the Hope Scott Trust and the RVW Trust. David Fennessy’s Confetti Medley, which also features two hand-cranked music box mechanisms, was shortlisted for the Gaudeamus Prize in 2006. We are also pleased to note that last year David Fennessy and Anna Meredith received the prestigious Paul Hamlyn Foundation’s Awards for Composers.