New choral and vocal works from Lydia Kakabadse

Lydia Kakabadse, composer of the “instantly enjoyable” 2016 choral album ‘Cantica Sacra’, will soon record new choral and vocal works for her album entitled Ithaka. The name, Ithaka (a track from her choral work Odyssey), is symbolic of a person’s journey through life – a journey whose destination is the richness of wisdom, knowledge and experience.

The album includes two choral works which were commissioned: I Remember (for children’s choir with piano and violin) was commissioned by Forest Preparatory School for the Bellevue Education Northern Music Festival 2016; Odyssey (for SATB and harp) was commissioned by the Hellenic Institute at Royal Holloway University of London in celebration of the Hellenic Institute’s 25^th anniversary in 2018. Odyssey, which symbolizes a musical journey through centuries of Greek history, culture and literature, includes both sacred and secular works, some of which are sung in Greek. Texts have been taken from a selection of Greek poetry representing successive eras, starting with Homer (around 800 BC) to Modern Hellenism.

The recording of Odyssey and I Remember by The Choir of Royal Holloway will take place in February 2019 at All Hallows’ Church, Gospel Oak, London.

The vocal works are for mezzo-soprano (or alto) with piano accompaniment, to be performed by Clare McCaldin and Paul Turner. They have been set to texts mainly from nineteenth century poets and include a diverse variety of themes. The style of music ranges from the recitativo of the Baroque era to minimalism. The songs will be recorded in March 2019 at St Paul’s Church, Knightsbridge, London.