Last year (2024) I continued my work on setting text by the American author Conrad Aiken (1889 – 1973). I chose verses from three poems included in his epic collection Time in the Rock: LXV, XLI and XCI, and then edited them to suit the structure of the music I was imagining. References to light, time and remembering predominate. The complete text may be viewed HERE.
The Light Absent is scored for soprano, vibraphone, cello and piano, an orchestration I used in a previous work – To Immortal Bloom. The piece lasts approximately 11 minutes and is in four movements.
- We Do Not Know (1:42)
- In The Clear Light (3:16)
- You Will Not Remember (2:00)
- In Stillness (4:10)
The recording below was made on August 24, 2025 in Walter Hall at the University of Toronto. The performers are: Lindsay McIntyre, soprano; Hoi Tong Keung, vibraphone; Emma Schmiedecke, cello; and Gregory Oh, piano.
Engineering, Editing and Mastering were by R & R Audio (Ray Dillard and Randy Crafton).
The piece is scheduled to be published by Keyboard Percussion Publications in 2026.
We Do Not Know
In The Clear Light
You Will Not Remember/In Stillness
