Sid Richardson

Composer

Shine Darkly Over Me

Year
2020
Duration
14'
Instrumentation
Flute, Harp, and Viola
Category
Chamber Ensemble

Commissioned by harpist Chloe Tula

Movements

  1. I. With sighs of fire (3')
  2. II. Fly away, fly away, breath (4'30'')
  3. III. My stars shine darkly over me (6')

Recordings

Performance recording

Performance History

  • Premiere
    Studzinski Recital Hall, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Bowdoin College, Brunswick, ME
    Flute – Alexander Day Viola – Sebastian Gonzalez Mora Harp – Amy Ahn
  • Jordan Hall, Boston, MA
    Flute – Emma Krause Viola – Luther Warren Harp – Yvonne Cox

Scores

Shine Darkly Over Me Perusal Score

View PDF

Available for purchase

This trio draws its title from William Shakespeare’s play Twelfth Night, or What You Will. A famous work dealing with the intersections of love and power, Twelfth Night inspired the music herein primarily through its vivid prosody and evocative imagery. The three movements “With sighs of fire”, “Fly away, fly away, breath”,and “My stars shine darkly over me” are taken out of context and explored through musical gestures stimulated by these phrases. The final movement, for example, weaves the words into the harmonic fabric of the music and, with its prominent focus on the pitch E, plays with the double entendre of me and the solfège syllable for E, mi. The real muse for the work, however, is harpist Chloe Tula, who commissioned the piece and to whom it is dedicated with admiration and gratitude. Shine Darkly Over Me was premiered on July 6, 2024,  in Studzinski Hall at Bowdoin College as part of the Bowdoin International Music Festival’s sixtieth season.

Related News

  • Performance of Shine Darkly Over Me

    I am thrilled that my trio for flute, viola, and harp, Shine Darkly Over Me, is having a second performance tomorrow night at New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall. Emma Krause, Luther Warren, and Yvonne Cox sound incredible, and I’m grateful to them for all of their hard work on this piece. This is part of […]

  • Shine Darkly Over Me Premiere at Bowdoin International Music Festival

    I am thrilled to be at the Bowdoin International Music Festival this weekend as a guest artist for the world premiere of my trio for flute, viola, and harp, Shine Darkly Over Me. It’s a joy to be back here after participating in the festival back in 2017, and to be programmed on the Gamper […]

  • Residency at The Hermitage Artist Retreat, 2020

    I’m happy to be spending the first four weeks of 2020 back at the Hermitage Artist Retreat doing a residency. It’s quite a shock to go from full-blown winter in Boston to what feels like summer here in Florida. I’m excited to get to work on a bunch of projects for the coming year, including […]