lumina concert - diana mcintosh

theatrical concert

of music written and performed by

diana mcintosh

with guest bassoonist karine breton

programme

on the far side of mars is scored for bass flute and piano interior, but for this performance the bass flute part will be played on bassoon by karine breton. when we arrived on mars (!), this red planet that has captivated mankind for millennia, we found it to be mysterious, surprising, frightening, and beautiful. it's tiny, bold, playful, and friendly inhabitants fascinated me. while my piece is not intended to be exclusively programmatic, i wanted it to reflect the evocative atmosphere of this strange small planet. we hated to leave. (!)

beryl markham - flying west with the night, for spoken text, piano, and tape, was inspired by the remarkable and intreped british woman who lived in kenya, africa. she became the first person to fly solo across the atlantic from east to west in 1936. the text is exclusively taken from markham's book : "west with the night" about her unconventional life in africa and her trans-atlantic flight. in 2002 i was invited to give three performances of this piece in nairobi, during which i met many of beryl's friends. it was a wonderful experience.