Premiered at St-Martin-in-the-Fields, June 2014

Fantasia for Voiceflute

'A Creature in an Abstract Cage Asleep', the title of which is taken from the poem 'I Leave This at Your Ear' by W.S. Grahm, deals with human aging by portraying the emotional journey undergone by a sufferer of dementia. This piece is very personal to me, as it was conceived in the last weeks of my grandfather's life as he himself descended into dementia; the frustration, anger, and confusion that he felt are captured by the fleeting and contrasting episodes of the composition. 'A Creature in an Abstract Cage Asleep' also portrays my grandfather's final journey, aiming to capture his slowly disappearing awareness as his existence came to an end.

The closing bars of the piece represent the way in which humans come to terms with-and, in a way, control-mortality. When the pianist finishes with the cluster chord figyure, every string on the piano should have sounded as loudly as possible and so the piano continues to resonate long after the player has finished. IN this way, the instrument gains its own identity, independent of the pianst. However long the pianist waits, the strings will continue vibrating, if only ona  microscopic level. The performer is thus forced to damen the piano before it can come to its own silence

A Creature In An Abstract Cage Asleep

Sonata for Horn and Piano

Commissioned by Myrddin Rees Davies

Premiered in the JDP Building, St Hilda's College, Oxford, November 2016

Sonata For Horn And Piano

Premiered at UniBrass 2017 by the Oxford University Brass Band.

Griffin takes its inspiration from the mythical beast of the same name, known as the king of all beasts, half lion (the king of animals), half eagle (the king of birds). As such, the march conveys an air of statehood but one that is combined with a sense of fear and awe. The march, and the air that follows, exemplify the two sides of the griffin with the march theme representing the power and ferocity of the lion, and the air representing the elegance of a flying eagle. Griffin aims to expand the sound world of the brass band in terms of its tonal language, but remains rooted in the structural conventions of a march to ground the listener in an easily recognisable form.

Griffin (A Concert March for Brass Band)

Commissioned by Jam Orrell for performance as part of their Finals recital programme.

Viola: Jam Orrell
Harpsichord: Josef Laming

Passacaglia for Baroque Viola and Harpsichord

"Noirs" was inspired by the works of Chinese artist 于轶文 and conjures different shades and textures of black. Rather than treating it as an absence of colour, "Noirs" creates a musical blackness that hangs over a something that can only ever be faintly made out.  

Performed by the Oxford Philharmonic on 10th February 2018.
(2.2.2.2, 2.2.0.0, timp, 1 perc, str)

Noirs (for Chamber Orchestra)

Half Moon Brass conducted by Adam Turner

University Church, Wednesday 13th June 2018

Fanfare in memoriam Gérard Grisey

A short electronic composition that deals with the time stretching of a single, one second, sample of audio. 

Sample taken from "A Mis Abuelos" by Arturo Sandoval
Title from "Christmas 1944" by H.D.

...the stratosphere was once where angels were...

Oxford Sinfonia
Cond. Chloe Rooke

The smell of sand and gunpowder drifts through marble pillars before the break of dawn. The air is quiet and the breeze floats along the cobbled streets of the ancient city of Palmyra. Malakbel rises from beneath the cloth of the Syrian desert, bringing warmth to the new day, for a moment at peace. A grand city comes into view, a place of commerce and prosperity, water and food, an oasis in the centre of a barren and desolate land. 

The Palmyran people may now be long gone and their city a shell, devoid of life. But Malakbel is older than the sand itself, and though names may change and die, gods themselves do not. The temples once built by humans to worship him millennia ago now lie in pieces, pulled apart by men of another faith. Time does not exist in myth, and beneath him, Malakbel sees all: the Roman city full of life, the ruins of a town that once was, the execution of archaeologists aside black and white flags. The hope of the Syrian people to rebuild.

Malakbel

Premiered on 29th May by Andrea Domínguez

In Touch for Solo Unpitched Percussion

On the Easter NYO course we were given the task of writting a piece of music, for the whole National youth orchestra to play, in a 10 minute rehearsal where all the score was only one page of A3 long. This is my attempt at the challenge where I create a repeated section where every time round more, and more instruments enter each time.

NYO One Page Piece 2013

The main task on the Easter 2013 National Youth Orchestra's composers course was to write a piece for an openly scored ensemble. This is my piece Gyre which explores two worlds, one that is calm and still, and another that is faster and more violent. 
A 35 piece NYO ensemble of triple wind and brass, percussion, double bass, and eight violas performed each of the six composers' works at the Royal Festival Hall and at the foyer of the Sage - Gateshead.

Gyre

see my website for more details: www.freddiemeyers.com

Freddie Meyers

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