Flare features a wide-range of music from Dubai-based composer, Joanna Marsh, whose work sees the choir join forces with Onyx Brass and the London Mozart Players. In Pearl of Freedom and The Tower, the forms of cantata and opera seem to merge into one, as Marsh retells two tales of history in her unique style. Pearl of Freedom recalls the fate of Emily Davison, a suffragette who died after running out in front of King George V’s horse at the Epsom Derby, whilst The Tower brings to life the biblical story of the Tower of Babel, and the scattering of the human race across the world that followed. In both, Marsh combines character-driven virtuosic recitative and aria with chorus parts that evoke the relentlessness of the race horses at Epsom and the madness and determination of those early humans in Babylon. Traces of influence from traditional Middle-Eastern music can also be heard throughout the two works, and the combination of these elements results in a highly dynamic and energetic recording which shines a light on one the of UK’s foremost female composers.
See the full album on Spotify here and more details from Signum Records here.
