Here is my performance of Chopin's Andante spianato et grande polonaise. Please enjoy and feel inadequate knowing that Chopin was 20 when he wrote this masterpiece. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejVP290MnZE - video!



Chopin - Andante spianato et grande polonaise brilliante Op.22

The remarkable Anson Ng performing my virtuosic Etude for solo piano. This piece juggles two hyperactive themes in opposition to one another. The excitement relents every now and again; giving way to static, 5th - based arpeggio figures. The two initial themes become increasingly agitated and fragmentary before a shattering FFFF climax abruptly halts the drama. A tranquil coda gently ushers in the end of the piece. 

Etude - Op. 15

Here is my performance of Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto with the University of York Symphony Orchestra, conducted by John Stringer. Congratulations to everyone involved, I think we really did something special. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFgyZty9xDc - video!

Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto in C minor, Op.18 - Frederick Viner - 28th November 2015

Performed at the University of York Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall. 

'The title sufficiently indicates my intention to compose a succession of waltzes, after Schubert's example.’

Although the audible likeness with Schubert is somewhat tenuous, Ravel’s suite of eight continuous waltzes adheres to traditional waltz models that were pioneered during the 19th century: characterised through periodic, block-like structuring of material, not to mention the distinctive use of lilting dance rhythms. Ravel employs a complex harmonic language that is simultaneously rich with dense, extended-note chords, all the while gravitating toward a pervasive, overarching G-major tonality that serves to unify the entire set. As well as this tonal continuity, Ravel frequently cross references, using a theme or gesture from one waltz to bridge to another; a process that culminates in the enigmatic 8th waltz, an epilogue where fragments of previous waltzes are woven through a mysterious soundscape, as if distant memories. 


Ravel's Valses nobles et sentimentales - Frederick Viner - 16/05/16

Performed at the University of York Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall.

Scriabin was deeply invested in the esoteric Theosophy movement 
and Vers la flamme (toward the flame) reflects his profound mystical beliefs: flamme most likely a metaphor for spiritual enlightenment and truth. Structurally the piece is one huge dynamic and textural crescendo. An incessant semitonal motif gradually gathers momentum, ascending to the highest registers of the keyboard demanding a sustained ff to fff dynamic for practically 4 pages!

Scriabin's Vers la flamme, Op.72 - Frederick Viner - 16/05/16

Winner of NCEM's Young Composers Award 2017. Performed in May 2017 by The Ebor Singers. In September The Tallis Scholars will perform the piece again at Bridgewater Hall for broadcast by BBC Radio 3. 

Distance – implied through the title as well as the musical direction lontano (as from a distance) – provides the unifying theme for this piece. Sighing sopranos ethereally Ave (hail) from up above the ensemble, hardly embodying their words as if heard from offstage; and more expressive, climactic moments that come later always prove fleeting, quickly receding back to a uniformly veiled, muted dynamic. 
The sopranos’ sighing gesture is taken up by the tenor in the last section and the music dies away with Vale (farewell) echoing through the texture.

Prayer from Afar - SSATB

Popule Meus was commissioned by Choir & Organ Magazine and was performed by the Saint Thomas Choir of Men & Boys on Good Friday, 2018, at Saint Thomas Church, fifth avenue, New York.

Sheet music - free download: http://www.rhinegold.co.uk/rhinegold-publishing/magazines/choir-organ/new-music/

Popule Meus - SATB

Written for Eton College Chapel Choir. Performed at JAM's 'Music of Our Time' concert on 21st March 2019 at St Bride's Church, London, by The Chapel Choir of Selwyn College, Cambridge.

Purchase the score: 

https://www.uymp.co.uk/composers/fred...

Programme note: 

For Messiaen, E-major had strong religious connotations, representing a hymnic praise of God. The French master has strongly influenced my music of late, so I thought it only natural to set 'Justorum Animae' using this supposedly theological key. The piece begins with a unison E, however the ethereal chord that subsequently unfolds – marked 'lontano' (as if from a distance) – is ambiguous and decidedly non-tonic. In fact, the only E-major we ever hear is the last chord of the piece, setting 'pace' – peace. Thus, this elusive tonic represents the destination for the music; the haven for the titular 'souls of the righteous' who must first endure the 'torment of malice', as depicted by tumultuous episodes in the middle of the piece. Once bathed in this final, tranquil sonority, the music gradually dies away, aided by the direction 'al niente' (to nothing).

https://frederickviner.com/

Music of Our Time 2019 (mp3)

Justorum Animae - SATB divisi

Awarded the University of York's STR Music Composition Prize (sponsored by Sean Rourke). Premiered by The 24 on 19th February 2020 at the Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, conducted by Robert Hollingworth.

Purchase the score:

https://www.uymp.co.uk/composers/frederick-viner/works/the-annunciation

Programme note: 

'The Annunciation’ sets the 15th century lyric ‘I syng of a mayden’, a carol that predates modern favourites by quite a few centuries. Despite its age (and quirky Middle English spelling), the text has inspired countless modern-day musical settings owing to its inherent melodic and rhythmic qualities, not to mention the first quatrain which explicitly evokes song.

My version features several conventional characteristics, such as a strophic form and an arch-shaped tune that recalls traditional folksong through its modal inflections. However, these archaic elements are subverted through the use of lush, extended-note chords that obscure the home key and rhapsodic soprano solos that stretch and warp the structure. This amalgam of conflicting elements ultimately concludes with a tranquillissimo section in which all musical and textual disputes are put to rest; here the music gradually fades away, setting the powerful final words ‘God’s mother be’.

The Annunciation - SATB

Don't update this much so come find me on youtube instead: https://www.youtube.com/c/frederickviner

Frederick Viner

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