iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Have been listening to this splendid new release of Rubbra's choral music on @delphianrecords.com by @mertoncollegechoir.bsky.social & Benjamin Nicholas. Well worth a listen! A lot of these are new to me. open.spotify.com/album/0wcipW...

open.spotify.com

Rubbra: Choral Music

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Sorry to hear of the passing of Bernard Rands (1934-2026). He leaves behind a treasured legacy of works, many of which are thankfully recorded. RIP.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 11/01/2026

What a treat! I well remember hearing it for the first time in a concert in around 1981 or so.

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Prof Kate Loder @kghist.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Huge thanks - I’ve greatly appreciated it and have learnt so much

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Chris Clark @chrisleeclark.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Exemplary curation, much appreciated.

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Occasionally Lost @mostlyrambling.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

It's been wonderful - thank you for all your time and effort in doing this. It's been great to see old favourites, to rediscover works I'd forgotten about, and to be introduced to music and composers I'd not heard of before. 🙏

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Hope you’ve also been aware of the cumulative playlist on Spotify. Final duration: 185 hours and 59 minutes. Put it on shuffle and play guess who? open.spotify.com/playlist/7BW...

open.spotify.com

BritSymphYear

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

The eagle-eyed amongst you will have realised that today is the last day of the year & therefore the end of these daily posts. I hadn’t quite realised a year ago what a commitment a daily post would be… But I’ve managed it & learned some things along the way. Hope you have as well!

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

This piece underscores her trailblazing role in British electronic music, bridging wartime sound effects work with later commissions, lectures, & inventions, despite institutional resistance. Its belated revival highlights her enduring legacy as a visionary often overlooked in male-dominated fields.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Born in Wiltshire, Oram turned down a Royal College of Music place to join the BBC, blending classical training with electronic experimentation influenced by musique concrète.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

In Oram's career (1925–2003), "Still Point" marks a pivotal early innovation, predating her co-founding of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop in 1958 & her departure in 1959 to develop Oramics, a drawn-sound synthesizer.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

After the 2016 performance, a revised version debuted at BBC Proms on 23 July 2018, at the Royal Albert Hall. No recordings existed during Oram's lifetime; the earliest stem from the 2016 perf, with audio excerpts available online, including a full 2016 rendition shared on platforms like YouTube.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Not formally commissioned, "Still Point" emerged from Oram's independent experiments at the BBC, where she worked as a studio engineer from 1942. She submitted it for the 1950 Prix Italia via the BBC, but it was rejected due to its radical nature and remained unperformed for decades.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Lasting about 30 minutes, the piece evokes a meditative stasis amid dynamic sonic layers, reflecting Oram's fascination with sound spatialization inspired by her wartime BBC experiences in the Royal Albert Hall.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Often hailed as the first work to blend orchestral elements with live electronics, it features pre-recorded material played at varying speeds, filtered, & reverberated, creating spatial depth through microphone placement.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Oram's "Still Point" (1948-50) stands as a groundbreaking electroacoustic composition for double orchestra, turntables, & 5 microphones, pioneering the real-time manipulation of electronic sounds alongside live acoustic performance.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Born #OTD in 1935, English composer, Daphne Oram. Her orchestral work, Still Point was premiered in June 2016, at St John's Smith Square, at the Deep Minimalism festival, realized by Shiva Feshareki & James Bulley with London Contemporary Orchestra. open.spotify.com/track/5iQ5MM... #britsymphyear

open.spotify.com

Still Point: I. — (Live)

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Amid over 100 works, it bridged his European roots with American opportunities, leading to residencies with orchestras like Philadelphia & further honours, including a 2000 Grammy for Canti d'Amor. The piece embodies his "inexhaustible" sonic exploration, fusing tradition with innovation.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

In Rands' career, born in 1934 in Sheffield, & emigrating to the U.S. in 1975 (naturalized 1983), "Canti del Sole" marked a pivotal moment. After studies in Wales & Italy, & teaching stints at York, UC San Diego, & Harvard, this Pulitzer win affirmed his status as a major contemporary composer.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

The 1st recording, released in 1986 on Composers Recordings Inc features Sperry with the SONOR Ensemble under Rands' direction, paired with Canti Lunatici. Later recordings include a 1994 New World Records version & a 2005 Arsis release with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

The work was commissioned by the New York Philharmonic. The first performance propelled the piece to acclaim, earning Rands the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for Music, highlighting its noble, exultant qualities.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Part of a vocal trilogy—Canti Lunatici (1980, soprano), Canti del Sole (tenor), & Canti dell'Eclisse (1992, bass)—it explores celestial themes through multilingual texts, showcasing Rands' fascination with voice & poetry.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Lasting about 29 minutes, it blends lyrical introspection with orchestral colour, drawing on Rands' post-serialist style influenced by his studies with Luciano Berio & Bruno Maderna.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Canti del Sole sets 14 poems by poets including Baudelaire, Dylan Thomas, Rimbaud, & others, evoking the sun as a metaphor for life's vitality & human experience.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Bernard Rands' "Canti del Sole" (1983) is a vibrant song cycle for tenor & orchestra. It premiered on 8 June 1983, at Avery Fisher Hall in New York, conducted by Zubin Mehta, with tenor Paul Sperry as soloist. open.spotify.com/track/69R5J1... #britsymphyear

open.spotify.com

Canti del Sole, for Tenor & Chamber Ensemble: Mattina

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

It underscores his "homeless" music—defying genres, fusing orchestral depth with electronic innovation, & reflecting a restless pursuit of sonic ambiguity amid influences from rock, jazz, & classical traditions.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

In Poppy's broader career, spanning over 4 decades, this piece represents a pivotal transition from ensemble work to solo recordings & collaborations, including dance scores, operas, & commissions like his 2006 oratorio, Something In the Air (Levitation & Fall).

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

Remastered versions highlight its fuller, less spiky sound, influenced by Fairlight CMI technology. Notably, revised sections formed the theme for Channel 4's The Tube music show, extending its reach.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

The first recording appeared on Poppy's debut album, The Beating of Wings (1985), released after he signed with ZTT Records in 1984—a label known for pop acts like Frankie Goes to Hollywood but which provided Poppy a platform to merge notated scores with studio electronics.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

Born in 1954, Poppy's teenage experiments with rock improvisation and tape music evolved into a fascination with American avant-garde composers like Cage and Riley, shaping his innovative approach.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

This marked a key moment in Poppy's career, post his 1979 Goldsmiths graduation, where he sought to recontextualize minimalist techniques beyond academic circles, bridging experimental contemporary music with broader audiences.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

The work's first performance was given by The Lost Jockey at City University, London, on March 4, 1982 amid the ensemble's active phase).

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

Lasting 14 minutes, it features an unconventional instrumentation: three treble voices, flute, alto saxophone, clarinet, bass clarinet, two pianos, electric organ, vibraphone/marimba, two violins, viola, and cello, using voices as ghostly textures overlaying instrumental lines.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

Composed during his formative years as a co-founder of The Lost Jockey, a large ensemble dedicated to pulse-based music inspired by Philip Glass, Steve Reich, and Louis Andriessen, the piece was not formally commissioned but emerged as one of several contributions Poppy made to the group.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

Andrew Poppy's "The Object Is A Hungry Wolf" (1982) exemplifies his early engagement with post-minimalism, blending repetitive structures with orchestral textures to create a pulsating, hypnotic soundscape. open.spotify.com/track/564NeG... #britsymphyear

open.spotify.com

The Object Is The Hungry Wolf

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

In the context of Spoliansky's long career, this score exemplifies his adaptable melodic gift, bridging his cabaret roots with Hollywood-influenced British cinema, and remains a vivid example of mid-century adventure scoring.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

This album, featuring orchestral excerpts from several Spoliansky films, introduced his North West Frontier music to modern audiences, praised for its lyrical & thrilling qualities.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

The 1st recording came much later: a suite arranged by Philip Lane, premiered on disc in 2009 with the BBC Concert Orchestra under Rumon Gamba on Chandos.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

The film was premiered in 1959, integrated into the soundtrack. No separate commercial soundtrack album appeared at the time.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

It was written for the Rank Organisation production, & it fit Spoliansky's established expertise in dramatic & comedic scores post-war, following works like Saint Joan (1957).

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

Conducted by Muir Mathieson, it incorporates the traditional Eton Boating Song as a recurring motif, enhancing the film's imperial adventure tone.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

North West Frontier (directed by J. Lee Thompson, starring Kenneth More & Lauren Bacall, released in US as Flame Over India) is set in a 1905 Indian rebellion, the score underscores the train journey through hostile terrain, blending grandioso themes with rhythmic drive to evoke peril & heroism.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

Forced to flee Nazi Germany in 1933, he settled in London, reinventing himself as a prolific film composer with over 50 scores.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

Born in Białystok (then part of the Russian Empire) into a musical Jewish family, Spoliansky rose to prominence in Weimar Berlin as a composer of witty cabaret songs & revues, collaborating with stars like Marlene Dietrich & setting texts by Kurt Tucholsky.

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BritSymphCup @britsymphcup.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

Born #OTD in 1898, Russian-British composer, Mischa Spoliansky (1898–1985). His atmospheric score for the 1959 British adventure film North West Frontier stands as a late-career highlight. open.spotify.com/track/08nX0q...

open.spotify.com

Spotify – Web Player

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Prof Kate Loder @kghist.bsky.social · 27/12/2025

Great to see this recognition of British composer Guirne Creith (1907-96). I’m fortunate enough to be in touch with her son - he and his brother knew nothing about the violin concerto until this score was found. Apparently there’s another recording coming out next year. It’s really worth a listen

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