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Music Swims Back to Me by Julia Powell
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fave it Contemporary | Orchestral
7 tracks | 37 minutes
Released Oct 2001
on Solponticello
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- sample "DOWNLOAD" 04:15 Music Swims Back to Me BUY MP3 04:15 Music Swims Back to Me "GIFT MP3" 04:15 Music Swims Back to Me
- sample "DOWNLOAD" 08:34 The Wonderful Musician BUY MP3 08:34 The Wonderful Musician "GIFT MP3" 08:34 The Wonderful Musician
- sample "DOWNLOAD" 06:47 Those Things BUY MP3 06:47 Those Things "GIFT MP3" 06:47 Those Things
- sample "DOWNLOAD" 02:24 In the Garden/ Ghosts BUY MP3 02:24 In the Garden/ Ghosts "GIFT MP3" 02:24 In the Garden/ Ghosts
- sample "DOWNLOAD" 01:20 Tired of Being a Woman FREE 01:20 Tired of Being a Woman "GIFT MP3" 01:20 Tired of Being a Woman
- sample "DOWNLOAD" 09:03 Fuis sur Ton Ane, Anne BUY MP3 09:03 Fuis sur Ton Ane, Anne "GIFT MP3" 09:03 Fuis sur Ton Ane, Anne
- sample "DOWNLOAD" 04:39 Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled BUY MP3 04:39 Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled "GIFT MP3" 04:39 Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled
a small chamber ensemble immersed in Anne Sexton's poetry of confusion, beauty. and loss. Featuring the amazing soprano Ellen Ritchey.
Editorial review
Music Swims Back to Me is a selection of Anne Sexton's poems put to music by modern composer Julia Powell and sung by soprano Ellen Ritchey, backed by a string quartet, piano, and percussion. The lyricism and despair found in Sexton's poetry have been brilliantly translated into music. The choice of a chamber ensemble saves the poetry's fragility and retains the intimate tone of the writing. Ritchey's performance is convincing, even gripping at times, but not flawless. The music draws on romantic ideas, Bart?k's string quartets, and Shostakovich and Lutoslawski's chamber music. For the most part it remains surprisingly listener-friendly, including the well-controlled atonal passages that depict emotional turmoil. The opening title piece and "Fuis Sur Ton ?ne, Anne/Music Swims Back to Me (Reprise)" stand out as particularly moving and effective, both in terms of composition and performance. The closing "Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled" is a work for choir and piano. It brings a strange solemn touch. On the downside, the CD's live recording is of very average sound quality and the booklet gives no detail as to where and when the recording was made or which musician plays what instrument (it's necessary to visit the label's website to find information such as the name of the soprano!). Better production would have done more justice to Powell's work, which doesn't mean Music Swims Back to Me is not enjoyable. ~ Fran?ois Couture, All Music Guide
Bio / Background
Music Swims Back to Me is the music of Athens composer Julia Powell with text by Anne Sexton.
The small chamber ensemble of percussion, strings, and the glorious soprano of Ellen Ritchey provides the perfect accompaniment to all the contradictions and clarity in Sexton's poetry.
A journey to the darkest shadows of the soul and redemptive, heartaching lyricism, this is an exceptional modern classical conceptualization.
A coda in the church chorus Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled completes a magnificent immersion into a world of unrest, longing, and deep discovery.
Julie [-a] Powell is a composer, songwriter, singer and instrumentalist living in Athens. After receiving her Bachelor's in Music from Washington & Lee University in 1996, she came to Athens to pursue a Masters in Music composition from the University of Georgia.
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