Geoffrey Gordon's Tiger Psalms (commissioned by Fulcrum Point New Music Project) blends three otherwise unrelated Ted Hughes texts which--as he was wont to do--explore the human experience (not always favorably) through the prism of the wild, natural world. In this case, the Tiger, the Wolf and the mythical Phoenix. The composer has separated the stanzas of the Tiger poem, and inserted the Howling of Wolves, followed by And the Phoenix Has Come, so that the return to Tiger Psalms unifies this text and emphasizes the transformative power of these words. The work is scored for mezzo soprano and seven instruments, divided into two sets of three instruments, blending with the keyboard, to create three distinct sound worlds for the mezzo soprano soloist to inhabit. The (muted) trumpet, clarinet and bass define the Howling of Wolves, while the flute (piccolo), viola and mallet percussion (along with, primarily, celesta rather than piano) define the Phoenix. The third sound world--all seven instruments together--defines the Tiger. Color, along with melody, is perhaps the most important element of this work. 

"In an era of reflexive Neo-Romanticism and vacuous pop-influences, there are not many young composers today who dare to write uncompromising 12-tone music. Not only does Geoffrey Gordon adhere to a fairly tough and astringent serial style in his Tiger Psalms, but the composer also makes the music sing magnificently. Like Alban Berg, Gordon’s modified serialism brings an individual and communicative style to his tone rows. These three songs for mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra, written to poems by Ted Hughes, are bracing and pungent stuff, scored with a striking ear for colors and unusual timbral contrasts and combinations... this is a very impressive and significant world premiere by a composer we should be hearing more from.” 
— Lawrence A. Johnson, Chicago Classical Review 

This is the world premiere performance of Tiger Psalms, featuring Fulcrum Point New Music Project, soloist Julia Bentley and conductor Stephen Burns, from March 22, 2011, at the Harris Theatre, Chicago. 


Tiger Psalms

US/UK composer Geoffrey Gordon’s contributions to the contemporary music repertoire have been and continue to be exceptional.  Intense and luxuriant harmony, passionate melody and superb handling of instrumentation and sonic textures define his music.  His works include orchestral, chamber and vocal works, recognised and performed by the world's top musicians and ensembles.  His music has been called "darkly seductive" (The New York Times), "complex, richly-satisfying " (BBC Music Magazine), “stunning” (Philadelphia Inquirer), “iridescent and glowing” (Chicago Tribune), “taut and exhilarating” (Classical Ear), “haunting” (Strings Magazine), "gripping" (Bachtrack), "fierce and uncompromising" (MusicWeb International) and “magnificent” (Fanfare).  The Philharmonia identifies “his infectious style" and “an ear for melody”; the New York Times his “zest for sonic experimentation”.  

Recently and upcoming, the BBC Philharmonic will premiere Mr. Gordon's new bassoon concerto, Anima Mia, during the 2022-23 concert season; the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Swedish Chamber Orchestra and Hong Kong Sinfonietta will premiere a jointly commissioned chamber concerto for Bb clarinet and ensemble, Fumee; and the Antwerp Symphony will premiere Mr. Gordon's Mad Song, which they commissioned for soloist Dimitri Mestdag. 

In 2018, the Philharmonia gave the premiere of Geoffrey’s Gordon’s bass clarinet concerto “Prometheus” after the treatment by Franz Kafka, at the RFH, with US and Nordic premieres following in 2019 with the Minnesota Orchestra and Malmo Symphony.   His superb setting of Keats' “Ode to a Nightingale” for choir and cello premiered in May 2018 in Copenhagen by Mogens Dahl Chamber Choir and a new CD of three of his major cello works, Cello Libris,  was released on the BIS label in early 2020, featuring the Copenhagen Philharmonic under Lan Shui.  His song cycles, “Peter Quince at the Clavier” and “Sonnets from Neruda” premiered in March 2018 at the Arnold Schoenberg Center, Vienna, and in October 2017 the Munich Philharmonic under James Gaffigan premiered his trumpet concerto, "CHASE," after the sculptures of Giacometti.  His cello sonata “FATHOMS” premiered at Carnegie Hall in  December 2015  and his “Winterleben” for horn, mezzo and piano (commissioned for Los Angeles Philharmonic principal horn, Andrew Bain), premiered in August 2015 as part of the 47th International Horn Symposium in Los Angeles.  Honoured by a number of residencies internationally, he has twice served as composer-in-residence at the Aaron Copland House and is winner of 2017 Mario Merz Prize for Music Composition. In 2018, he was commissioned by the Curie Institute in Paris, part of the Muse-IC project. A new chamber work, featuring musicians from the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, premiered at the  Salle Cortot Theatre in Paris in March, 2019. 

Future performances and commissions include new works for the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra, the Brussels Philharmonic and many others.

Find more links to Geoffrey Gordon's music, as well as bio and reviews etc. at www.geoffreygordoncomposer.com

NEW CD, Cello Libris, out on BIS Records!  
Find it here:
https://bis.se/performers/moldrup-toke/cello-libris-works-by-geoffrey-gordon

Hi! I'm a 35-year-old writer living in Chicago who dabbles in classical music. I've been writing music since I was 18, amassing a good amount of chamber works and a few orchestral pieces, too, though I now primarily focus on arranging pieces for woodwinds. I'm particularly fond of video game music and have spent much of my free time creating suites for classic 90s JRPGs. I've been fortunate to have my music performed worldwide, and I'm always looking to connect and collaborate with other musicians to help bring a new life into neo-classical music.

London based Musician; composer, pianist / accompanist, drummer, teacher.  Founder of @CheekyPromo, Cheeky Fest, ...

Film/Media Composer for  
Short Films:
Silence (2019)/You May Kiss The Bride (2019)/My Brother Will Find Me (2019)/Prom of the Dead (2021)/Conjuring My Mom {Not a Clickbait} (2021)/Abduction Production (2021)/ Lightheaded (2022)

Features:
Contracts (2019)

Series:
Wishful Genies {Sketch YouTube Channel} (2019-Present)


(Works before 2018 are amateur works done for fun)

George is a Film-Multimedia and Video Game Composer, Orchestrator and Musicologist.

Having composed the music for over 30 films (6 feature movies, 25 short movies), many TV Shows, an American Epic Video Game, Documentaries and several other projects, with talented and globally awarded directors and producers. He is delivering popular but unusual genres of film and television music from his professional studio globally. He has written several kinds of music (ambient, epic, abstract, minimal, contemporary, classical, ethnic and others).
His training includes all areas of traditional and modern composition, orchestration, music preparation, and conducting for film and visual mediums (MA in Film Scoring from SMKS-Denmark, Bachelor and MA of Music in Musicology from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Degrees and Diplomas of Harmony, Counterpoint, Byzantine Music, Fugue and Orchestration).
www.GeorgeXoulogis.com

Tiger Psalms

Geoffrey Gordon Composer