Drawing Breath

Our breath is a base expression of our feelings – we let out an anxious or surprised gasp, or a sigh of relief. We take a deep breath when we brace ourselves, and hold our breath when we wait. We talk about our breath when we are awestruck, when we rest, when we sigh, or speak, or sing. In recent years, we have witnessed and experienced violent asphyxiation in many forms, from the thick smoke of bushfires to the spectre of respiratory infection. Meanwhile, the words “I can’t breathe” resonate around the world as a harrowing reminder of the ongoing persecution of black communities both in the United States and here at home in Australia.

In Drawing Breath, Luminescence Chamber Singers explore first breaths, last breaths, and music as diverse as the vast compass of human life and feeling in between: from Machaut and Gesualdo, to Pink Floyd, and newly commissioned works by Australian composers Brenda Gifford, Jess Green, and Dan Walker.

1 hour no interval

Dan Walker, Listen, Are You Breathing Just A Little and Calling It A Life?

Jess Green, I Heard You Sing

Programme:

Pink FLOYD arr. Dan WALKER Breathe [1973] 3’40

Guillaume de MACHAUT Motet no 2: De Souspirant/Tous corps qui de bien amer/Suspiro 2’15

Dan WALKER Listen, Are You Breathing Just A Little And Calling It A Life [2022] 5’00

Andrew FORD (arr. R PEELMAN) Red Dirt Hymns: Dark Cloud [2020] 2’00

Carlo GESUALDO Sospirava il mio core [1595] 1’40

Hildegard von BINGEN O ignis Spiritus paracliti [1098 - 1179] 6’00

Adrian WILLAERT Sospiri Miei [1545] 2’00

Carlo GESUALDO Dolcissimo Sospiro [1595] 2’45