A Dramatic Journey: 60 Years of Thea Musgrave’s Music for Oboe

Rebecca Johnson, Elizabeth Sullivan, Cara Chowning, Jessica Lindsey

Catalog #: TROY1835
Release Date: August 1, 2020
Format: Digital
Chamber

Thea Musgrave (b. 1928) grew up in Scotland, but has lived in the U.S. since the early 1970s. She is renowned for her ability to create dramatic, expressive music for any musical medium, from solo works and a huge output of varied chamber music, to the large scale concertos and operas with which she made her mark. This recording explores her music for oboe that was composed over a 60 year span. Oboist Elizabeth Sullivan is on the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She is active as a recitalist, orchestral musician and pedagogue. Sullivan is a graduate of Stetson University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her collaborators include flutist Rebecca Johnson, assistant professor at Eastern Illinois University, pianist Cara Chowning, and clarinetist Jessica Lindsey, also on the faculty at UNC Charlotte.

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Track Listing

Title Composer Performer
Impromptu No. 1 Thea Musgrave Rebecca Johnson (flute); Elizabeth Sullivan (oboe)
Dawn Thea Musgrave Elizabeth Sullivan (oboe)
Threnody Thea Musgrave Elizabeth Sullivan (English horn); Cara Chowning (piano)
Impromptu No. 2 Thea Musgrave Rebecca Johnson (flute); Elizabeth Sullivan (oboe); Jessica Lindsey (clarinet)
Niobe Thea Musgrave Eliabeth Sullivan (oboe)
Night Windows Thea Musgrave Elizabeth Sullivan (English horn); Cara Chowning (piano)
Trio for Flute, Oboe and Piano Thea Musgrave Rebecca Johnson (flute); Elizabeth Sullivan (oboe); Cara Chowning (piano)

Reviews

  • "Young American oboist Elizabeth Sullivan, assistant professor at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte, forms the basis of this program, playing English horn as well. She made Scottish-American composer Thea Musgrave the subject of her doctoral dissertation at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Selections range from 1960 to 2012, and the composer, born in 1928, is still with us. We have two solos, three duets, and two trios. Compositional techniques range from serial and unmetered to using taped accompaniment to tonal and metric. These performances are thoroughly rehearsed and coordinated. Everyone plays at an exemplary professional level, with splendid tone quality. Their commitment to the project is apparent from the first note to the last. "

    – American Record Guide

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