1. First Light

Salford Choral Society premiere of The Gardener with conductor Tom Newall

Composer’s Note

I approached this text from the point of character, drama and storytelling. I tried to inhabit the characters in the piece and act/ tell their story through music.

Because Rebecca’s text is so rich and multilayered with many possible meanings, I was able to think about which layers/ emotional narratives to bring out musically. Sometimes I bring out an emotional narrative simmering slightly below the surface of the text, and sometimes I paint something closer to the surface.

It was important to me that the piece celebrates the joy of singing, music and life in all its complexities. I’ve kept music fast moving and full of bold contrasts and cinematic changes of perspective, responding to the humour and wit in Rebecca’s text and also its depth.

Listening Guide

We awake with a jolt and we hear the choir boldly announce the beginning of the day with the “First Light” theme. We join the crow’s morning routine. She is precise and serious and as she's pecking for worms we hear a pecking motif in the strings and then in the brass. Mist lifts around her in the harp and tremolo strings. The music becomes jubilant as the crow finds and eats a worm. There is a sharp shift from joy to horror as she crunches the worm. Emerging from the still aftermath of the worm’s death, we meet the gardener, who pops out into the garden to drink her morning tea and watch the sunlight dispelling mist. We jolt back to the perspective of the crow who watches the gardener do some gardening. As she’s digging the compost heap, she finds a grass snake. The grass snake is characterised by some slippery, silvery music in piano, harp, flutes and cor anglais, which we hear slowly slinking into the distance.

A raucous drinking song breaks out as the gunnerra (a giant rhubarb plant), and an unseasonal heatwave, drink the pond dry. We then hear a slightly manic show tune, with rising panic about where all the pond creatures have gone. This ramps up and up until it explodes into a scream of GET THE WATERING CAN! This dissipates into the lethargy of a hot day. The pressure of heat starts building and building until we have a brief, rageous storm from which a gentle, meditative rain shower emerges.

Pizzicato strings nod and bob welcoming us to the meadow. The meadow is a bright collage of quickly changing, energetic music, acting like a collage of different coloured flowers. The meadow dances, starting first with a bright waltz, then a more driving, snapping groove for seeds scattering and popping. We hear a buzzing tangle of flowers, each flower having its own melody and rhythm. First you hear each flower on its own, and then they start interlocking and tangling together. This bursts into a more rowdy waltz, where pollinators dance nectar drunk. These different sections are juxtaposed kaleidoscopically, creating a joyous and merry celebration of life.

Dusk then begins to fall, the work of the day is done, the gardener is sitting on a bench, watching the night encroach. There is a feeling of grief and delicate sadness, but also beauty, dignity and power. As the piece comes to a close, the opening “First Light” theme resounds, in the horn then the flute. First light rears its head as the natural world’s inevitable cycle of time begins again.

The Gardener - First Light

The Longest Night is a queer solstice carol that follows the journey of someone who arrives at a festive party alone, and walks out onto snow-covered streets hand-in-hand with someone new. Through an evening filled with joyful singing and dancing, a new, romantic connection is forged. This is a piece about the warmth, excitement and hope of falling in love at the darkest time of the year.

The piece was commissioned by The Sunday Boys and was premiered on 21st December 2024 in Manchester Cathedral as part of A Very Queer Christmas Our Solstice Night. It was conducted by Michael Betteridge. 

The Longest Night

A dark, floaty opium-vamp anthem built on hypnotic

VAMPTRIP 666

Christmas Magic is a festive song written by composer Lucy Armstrong and writer Helen Arney for Glyndebourne and Create Music as part of One Voice Festival of Singing.

The song is all about sharing the magic of Christmas with the people around you. It’s full of energy and excitement as everyone comes together to celebrate the season with singing and dancing. Looking up into the sky in search of Christmas magic, we suddenly find ourselves in a distant land full of snow-covered Christmas trees, shooting stars and flying reindeer!

This live recording is from 11th December's evening performance. It is performed by children from local primary schools, members of Glyndebourne Sinfonia and The Glyndebourne Chorus and is conducted by Ashley Beauchamp.

Words:
I can share the secret,
If you hold it tight:
You’ll find Christmas magic
If you just look up tonight
Beating a drum
This Christmas will come as a rhythm
Raising a cry
This Christmas will come as a song
Stamping our feet
This Christmas will come as we’re dancing
Holding your hand
It’s Christmas wherever we are
Listen to the music
Hear the carols ring
You’ll find Christmas magic
If you just look up and sing
Beating a drum
This Christmas will come as a rhythm
Raising a cry
This Christmas will come as a song
Stamping our feet
This Christmas will come as we’re dancing
Holding your hand
It’s Christmas wherever we are
Fir and pine and evergreen
The whitest snow I’ve ever seen
Treetops sway
A world away
Lift your eyes
And you’ll see flying reindeer fill the skies
Look above the chimneys
Find a shooting star
You’ll find Christmas magic
With the beat of a drum
And a stamp of your feet
And a song in your heart
You’ll find Christmas magic
If you just look up tonight!

Christmas Magic is also available for choir and piano, and choir and chamber orchestra and choir and symphony orchestra. Please visit www.lucyarmstrong.com for more information. 



Christmas Magic

All The Way is a deep and uplifting Balearic House track that captures the moment when hesitation fades and feeling takes control. Built on warm grooves, subtle tension, and an expansive atmosphere, the song explores commitment not as obligation, but as surrender — choosing to go forward fully, without holding back.

The production blends a steady, hypnotic rhythm with airy pads and understated melodic elements, creating a sense of motion that feels both intimate and expansive. Vocals float between presence and absence, guiding the listener through emotion rather than narrative, while the refrain opens into a wide, sunlit release made for the dancefloor and the horizon.

“All The Way” is about trust, momentum, and the quiet confidence of knowing when to let go and move forward. It’s a track designed for open skies, long nights, and moments where the outside world dissolves, leaving only rhythm, breath, and connection.

ALL THE WAY

DJ Estefan

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