b. 1954 British composer Born in England to Scottish parents, Weir studied privately with Tavener and at Cambridge University. Various world traditions have informed the narratives of her operas, such as A Night at the Chinese Opera (1987, a Chinese Yuan Dynasty drama), The Vanishing Bridegroom (1990, a story from the Scottish west highlands) and Miss Fortune ...
b. 1954, British Combining stylistic versatility with a strong compositional voice, Weir’s interests in narrative, theatre and folklore are well suited to opera. She also writes her own libretti. With themes ranging from Chinese Yuan Dynasty drama, Icelandic sagas and German romanticism, and a fine understanding of the voice, her operas have earned a secure ...
serpent enjoyed something of a revival in the twentieth century with the advent of the early-music movement. A number of composers, including Peter Maxwell Davies (b. 1934) and Judith Weir (b. 1954) wrote for the instrument. It has, though, never taken root as permanent orchestral member. Introduction | Brass Instruments Instruments | Cornet | Brass ...
Opera Major Operas | Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny by Kurt Weill | Modern Era Major Operas | Die Dreigroschenoper by Kurt Weill | Modern Era Personalities | Judith Weir | Modern Era | Opera Techniques | Expressionism | Modern Era | Opera ...
Nicole Smith, also seen in Dortmund and New York. Recommended Recording: Greek, soloists, Greek Ensemble (cond) Richard Bernas (Decca) Introduction | Contemporary | Classical Personalities | Judith Weir | Contemporary | Classical ...
and legions of ‘Deadhead’ fans than for its body of studio work, The Grateful Dead grew out of a union between singer-songwriter/lead guitarist Jerry Garcia (1942–95), songwriter/rhythm guitarist Bob Weir (born 16 October 1947) and keyboardist/singer Ron ‘Pigpen’ McKernan (1946–73). They were to become the poster boys of the psychedelic scene that flourished in San Francisco during the mid to ...
conspire to create a dreamlike atmosphere, as in Thomas (1985), about a thirteenth-century bishop who was one of the first to propose the idea of Finnish nationhood. Turnage and Weir A generation younger than Sallinen and Rautavaara, the British composer Mark-Anthony Turnage (b. 1960) sought an altogether more abrasive style in Greek (1988), which relocated the Oedipus myth to ...
Blood Wedding (1992), in which her intensely chromatic musical language, with its strong sense of melodic line, illustrates Lorca’s story of passionate but illicit love. In 1979 Judith Weir (b. 1954), one of Britain’s best-known living composers, produced King Harald’s Saga, a remarkable 10-minute ‘Grand Opera’ for solo soprano, who sings all roles (including the entire ...
Rock, jazz, soul; each of these genres, while containing a multiplicity of various offshoots, is defined by some kind of unifying theme. But this miscellaneous section, as any record collector will know, is where everything else ends up. Most of the styles within this ‘genre’ have little in common save the fact that they do ...
(Vocal/instrumental group, 1978–93, 2009–present) To the surprise of many, Johnny Rotten reinvented himself after The Sex Pistols as John Lydon. He enlisted Keith Levene (guitar, drums), Jah Wobble (b. John Wardle, bass) and a variety of other transient contributors. The punky thunder of PiL stormed the UK Top 10 and a good self-titled debut album followed ...
(Vocal/instrumental group, 1977–present) Formerly known as Johnny and The Self-Abusers, Glaswegians Jim Kerr (vocals), Charlie Burchill (guitar), Derek Forbes (bass), Mick McNeil (keyboards) and Brian McGee (drums) took on board the experimentations of Krautrock and Brian Eno for their second album Real To Real Cacophony (1979). They gently sloughed off their weirder tendencies over their next two albums, ...
(Vocal/instrumental group, 1986–93, 2004–present) One of the most important alternative rock bands ever came together in Boston with Charles Thompson IV, who styled himself Black Francis (vocals, guitar), Joey Santiago (guitar), Kim Deal (bass, vocals), and Dave Lovering (drums). Lyrically, Thompson explored religion, weird sex and sci-fi, singing with a preternaturally forceful yelp. ...
In the 1980s, the crossover ideal – not just between black and white music, but between rock and pop, and adults and kids – ruled the airwaves. Even the previously personal and introspective singer-songwriters were forced to adjust, and to dilute their piano-based romantic ballads with uptempo, full-band, dance-friendly songs. The brassy soul-pop nostalgia of ...
By the 1970s, the new sound of funk dominated Afro-American music. Jazzers such as Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock scored their biggest commercial successes by incorporating its hip-grinding rhythms into what became known as fusion or jazz funk, while soul acts enjoyed a second wave of popularity as funk provided the bridge between the soul and disco eras. Fuelled ...
Straddling genres from pop to rock, country to dance, novelty songs tell humorous stories using satire, wackiness or a topical link with television, film or a popular craze. Though often musically dubious, they have enjoyed massive, but generally fleeting, success in the modern era. Music and comedy have been bed fellows since the days ...
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