Myrkvun - Blake Clawson

Описание: Myrkvun, for mixed choir, cello, and piano

Please enjoy the subtitles, which concurrently show the original Icelandic poetry and an English poetic translation.

Performed by ‪@RenovaNewMusicEnsemble‬ with Aric Vyhmeister (piano) and Peyton Magalhaes (cello)
Composed, conducted, and produced by Blake Clawson
Recorded by Kevin Harbison

0:00 - Myrkvun
0:06 - I. Sumarnótt
6:30 - II. Haust
11:42 - III. Vetur

About the piece:
Myrkvun ("Darkening") is a three-movement work setting Icelandic poetry about the seasons to music. As the poetry moves from summer through autumn and into winter, the music grows increasingly somber, reflecting the darkening skies through the turning of the year.

The first movement, Sumarnótt ("Summer Night"), captures the peace and splendor of a summer night near the Arctic Circle, where the sun's light never fully departs. The poet celebrates the evening sky's resplendent colors, framed against the vast expanse of the sea. The music evokes the tranquil beauty of this luminous night.

Haust ("Autumn") portrays the fading of summer and the arrival of frost. The poem is a meditation on the endless flow of time, with autumn's harsh weather serving as a metaphor for change and transition. The music reflects this shift, embracing the heaviness and inevitability of the darkening skies and falling leaves.

Vetur ("Winter") depicts the harshness of winter’s cold and darkness while also wrestling with hope. Birds have departed, leaving behind a quiet and austere landscape, yet the poet finds solace in the knowledge that summer will return, a theme echoed in the music’s blend of starkness and quiet optimism. At its close, this movement depicts the first rays of light after a season of darkness, the sun barely breaking the horizon.