Latest news with #NicoMuhly
ABC News
a day ago
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Singing the Aphrodite myth, and a new take on golden age of Persian contemporary music
Growing up in Iran, Ashkan Shafiei would listen to 'forbidden music' on cassette tapes—songs recorded before the revolution, or by Iranian artists living overseas. Ashkan plays the rubab, a plucked-string instrument popular in Afghanistan, but rarely heard in Iran despite having an ancient history there. Now living in Australia, Ashkan's own music blends 'forbidden music' influences with traditional Persian music and his love of jazz and funk. His new EP Hunter was developed as part of the Artist Accelerator Program by Music in Exile — an initiative supporting artists from non-English language backgrounds to launch music careers in Australia. Is it Aphrodite's fault that the beauty industry has never been more powerful? That's the question that Aphrodite , a new work by American composer Nico Muhly and Australian playwright Laura Lethlean, asks in its world premiere by Sydney Chamber Opera. Starring Sydney Chamber Opera stalwart Jessica O'Donoghue, and Puerto Rican soprano Meechot Marrero in her Australian debut, it's an exploration of beauty and pleasure underscored by Omega Ensemble. Jess, Meechot and SCO Artistic Director Jack Symonds join Andy to give a sneak preview of the work. We say farewell to Terry Harper who is retiring after 49 years tuning the pianos in the ABC studios in Sydney. His work has been heard on thousands of recordings and live performances across Radio National, Jazz, Classic, local radio and more. We'll hear from Terry about the two essential skills that every piano tuner must have. Plus, a track to remember Sly Stone who died this week at 82. Aphrodite is presented by Sydney Chamber Opera at Carriageworks in Sydney 20 – 28 June Ashkan Shafiei is performing at the Stay Soft Studio Winter Solstice Night Market at Collingwood Yards in Melbourne on Saturday 21 June Music heard in the show: Title: Madhouche Artist: Ashkan Shafiei Composer: Ashkan Shafiei Album: Hunter (EP) Label: Impressed Recordings/Music in Exile Title: Extracts from Aphrodite Artist: Jessica O'Donoghue, Meechot Marrero (singers), Jack Symonds (piano) Composer: Nico Muhly, text Laura Lethlean Performed live in The Music Show studio Title: Dance to the Music Artist: Sly & the Family Stone Composer: Sylvester Stewart Album: Dance to the Music Label: Epic Records Title: Madhouche Artist: Ashkan Shafiei Composer: Ashkan Shafiei Album: Hunter (EP) Label: Impressed Recordings/Music in Exile Title: Camel on Mars Artist: Ashkan Shafiei Composer: Ashkan Shafiei Album: Hunter (EP) Label: Impressed Recordings/Music in Exile Title: Chi Begam Artist: Ashkan Shafiei Composer: Marzieh Album: Hunter (EP) Label: Impressed Recordings/Music in Exile The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country
The Guardian
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
My Days: Orlando Gibbons and Nico Muhly album review
The 400th anniversary of the death of Orlando Gibbons has so far been one of the less prominently marked of this year's significant musical dates. Gibbons, who was born in Oxford in 1583, was one of the last significant English madrigalists, and is often viewed as a transitional figure between Renaissance music and the baroque, though historically he has been overshadowed by the more prolific William Byrd, with whom he may have studied. As well as vocal works, Gibbons wrote a wealth of string chamber music, and Fretwork's selection includes Fantasias in two, three, four, five and six parts, as well as a Pavan and Galliard for six viols. Placed at the centre of the sequence is Nico Muhly's My Days, originally commissioned for Fretwork and the Hilliard Ensemble; it's a setting for four male voices and viols of Psalm 39, with an extract from a report on the autopsy that was performed on Gibbons; Muhly describes the result as 'a ritualised memory piece about Orlando Gibbons'. Muhly's composition, with its urgent string figures, contrasts beautifully with the flowing imitations of Gibbons' fantasias, around it. Its vocal lines are built out of a single falling melodic figure, with the quartet of counter tenor, two tenors and baritone moving in luminous rhythmic unison through the psalm, before the autopsy is delivered as a series of Gibbons-like responses, until a final section with the voices surrounded by plucked strings before settling on the words 'my days', with the viols fluttering around them. It sets off the string pieces around it, perfectly. This article includes content hosted on We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as the provider may be using cookies and other technologies. To view this content, click 'Allow and continue'. Listen on Apple Music (above) or Spotify
