These intensely concentrated variations were premiered by Raphael Terroni in May 1983. Described as a “characteristically eccentric gem” by the Hampstead & Highgate Gazette, they have been widely performed, and are featured on the 2010 CD of Giles Easterbrook’s music, The Moon Underwater (Prima Facie PFCD 002)
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An instrumental drama which portrays the events, settings and characters of the Shakespeare play. In ten contrasted pieces which skilfully exploit the harpsichord’s varied registers, we hear Macbeth’s encounter with the witches, his dark broodings, and Lady Macbeth’s wily powers of persuasion – an increasingly manic Valse diabolique. The growing mayhem eventually leads to the appearance of Banquo’s ghost, and Macbeth’s defeat at the hands of Macduff. Vivid, spooky and exciting.
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First performed by James McVinnie in Westminster Abbey on May 16th 2010, this brilliantly coloured recital-piece (although very different in idiom) echoes Riff-raff in its variety & unpredictability. Dedicated to the memory of Swayne’s much-lamented monkey Cuckoo, it is a series of variations on his name, and presents a portrait of his character.
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Three short and sweet pieces: the first delicate and almost minimalist, the second flashy and full of contrast, and the third a contribution to Bach’s Orgelbüchlein – a version of one of the chorales he listed but never set.
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The second book of Swayne’s Bagatelles, composed in July 2011, was first performed by the composer at the Tout-petit festival de Musique, St. Germain de Calberte, in the Cévennes region of France. The publication of Book 1 has been delayed because several of the pieces were not completed until recently; it will appear in autumn 2012.
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