HLG Sunday Concert Series: Nick Roth Quintets I and II

Sunday May 24th 13.00

Abbey Presbyterian Church www.abbeychurch.ie

Nick Roth Quintets

Paul Roe - clarinet / bass clarinet , Dermot Dunne – accordion, Cora Venus Lunny – violin, Elaine Clark – violin, Joanna Mattrey – viola, Alex Acomb – cello

Quintets I and II

(2010 and 2019)

The two pieces are based on the Jewish Chazzan and the Islamic Ezan, the sacred liturgical music and the call to prayer respectively. My aim in writing the works was to show the deep interconnections between the two faiths, which is evident from their sharing of harmonic modes (the maqamat). My original idea was always that they could be played together as a single 40' work, as they both start and end with breath (bow on wood) and were designed to be interconnected. Given the current state of the world, I strongly believe that speaking openly about role of music as inter-connector and a shared cultural heritage is an conversation to be having at the moment.

nickrothmusic.com

photo, Tony Carragher