Trevor Wishart

“Encounters in the Republic of Heaven”

Encounters is an 8-channel sound-surround piece based on speaking voices recorded in the North East of England where Trevor Wishart was A.C.E. Composer-in-Residence from October 1st, 2006 to September 2009, based at the University of Durham. The piece is constructed in 4 Acts of approximately 20 minutes each, combining portraits of individual speakers (accompanied by sounds and imaginary instruments derived from the voices themselves) with computer animation of the entire community of voices – speech that waltzes, speech that locks in harmony, clouds of speech that circle the audience, culminating with speech that transforms into song. The piece was finally completed on January 1st 2011.

ACT 1 (c. 20mins)

Voicewind
The Fisherman’s Tale
Children’s Stories I
Speech Waltzing
The Budgie
The Bellydancer
Finale

ACT 2 (c. 17mins)

Teens Gossip
The Dancer’s Tale
Clouds of Speech
Travelling Butcher
Children’s Stories II
Finale

ACT 3 (c. 23mins)

Voicewind
The Farmer’s Tale
Heathcliffe, come here!
Speech harmonised
The Stories I Hear!
The Soldier’s Tale
Finale

ACT 4 (c. 15mins)

The Poet’s Tale
The best thing that ever happened to me
Finale – Speech Singing – Voicewind

http://www.trevorwishart.co.uk/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trevor_Wishart