The premiere of Call of the Ocean at Nelson Centre of Musical Arts on Saturday 19th June marked the end of a nearly year-long journey of creative collaboration and music-making. It was a privilege to be selected as recipient of the 2020-2021 SOUNZ Community Commission alongside Nelson Bays Harmony Chorus, in August of 2020. The commission was established in 1999 and each year brings together a New Zealand composer and community group, thanks to funding from an anonymous donor, to create an original piece of music.
The process of building this piece from the ground up in collaboration with the chorus members was so rewarding. Their background is mainly in barbershop, jazz and modern a cappella so delving into the choral world was a new experience for them and one which they fully embraced. They rose to the challenge and we worked hard to make this piece of music their own. Something particularly special about Call of the Ocean is that the text (as seen at the bottom of this post) was written by members of the chorus.
Our shared goal leading up to the premiere was to truly capture the audience, drawing them into a mesmerising sound world evoking the ocean. We were thrilled with the audience response, and a number of audience members commented how moved they were by the performance. Safe to say, this collaboration has ended on a high note for both the chorus and myself.
Many thanks go out to the chorus for joining me on this special journey, to the team who put many hours into organising the premiere concert, to SOUNZ and the donor of the commission, and everyone who supported us along the way x
CALL OF THE OCEAN
by members of Nelson Bays Harmony Chorus
The ocean may separate
A mistress of many moods
You take and you give
You pull and you push
You sustain us with your gift
The ocean may separate
The lash of a storm at sea
You take and you give
You roar and you soothe
You reflect the cloudless sky
And you carry us home
Bright light over the ocean blue
And the crashing of sea on shore
Lift my spirit from within,
The sound of the sea as the waves come thundering in,
Clear waters on golden sand,
The prow of a boat as it reaches our land,
Lift my spirit from within
As I stand here making imprints in the sand
The ocean; it draws my soul home
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