NEWS AND RECENT EVENTS

PREMIERE
A professional video recording of Gwanwyn (Spring) in now on YouTube. The premiere of the work by the Portland Baroque Orchestra, Julian Perkins, director, took place on 14th March, 2025, in Portland, Oregon, USA, with a second performance the next day. Alas, Rhian couldn't attend in person, but did so via the web, giving a pre-concert introduction to the piece, a work that was inspired by Vivaldi's 'Spring' from The Four Seasons. Gwanwyn may be played by either a baroque or modern ensemble; the score is soon to be published by Tŷ Cerdd.

NEW CD
Another work just out in the USA:  a lovely recording of Rhian's Bitter-Sweet, played by Laura Kobayashi, violin, and Susan Keith Gray, piano. [See DISCOGRAPHY].  Laura, who trained with Dorothy Delay at the Juilliard School, is based in West Virginia and Susan in South Dakota. They get together to perform as the Kobayashi-Gray Duo and we are fortunate that they do. 

Isabella Geddis (composer), Jocelyn
Freeman (piano), James Gilchrist
(tenor) and RS at Dulwich College.



CWMDONKIN SONGS


Three performances of Cwmdonkin Songs (to poems by Dylan Thomas) were recently given by James Gilchrist, tenor: at the Crickhowell Festival with Anna Tilbrook, piano, and at Dulwich College and St David's Cathedral with Jocelyn Freeman, piano. The American baritone, Matthew Hoch, and Jonathan Levin, piano, presented the pieces in Colombia, South America, in March, and will do so again in June in Columbus, Mississippi, USA, while the CD containing the songs, with Christopher O'Gorman, tenor, and David Pipe, piano, issued by the Dylan Thomas Project, will appear soon. The work is published in two versions, for high or medium/low voice.

Jacob Jordan, Amelia Wise, RS,
Taran McNeil and WangYat-Wong at the RAM




EARLIER PERFORMANCES
Locomotion for four clarinets by Rhian was played by a talented group of students from the RAM at the Angela Burgess Hall on Tuesday 29th April, 2025. Great to see young players choosing her music and playing it so well. 

One of Rhian's most performed choral works, Love bade me welcome (George Herbert), was sung again by New College Choir, director Robert Quinney, on 1st March, 2025, at Evensong; it will be presented by Cantorion Llandrindod, conductor Hilary Cox, on 14th June, 2025, in Llandrindod, Powys, along with 'Proud of my Broken Heart' from Lovesongs & Observations (Emily Dickinson).

The Tender Branch was played by David Pipe at Huddersfield Town Hall on 24th March, 2025, after its presentation by Tom Winpenny at St Paul's Cathedral, London, last October. 

Performances of Rhian's songs and song-cycles in autumn, 2024, included three songs from Spring Dairy (Anne Stevenson) by baritone James Atkinson with Ian Tindale, piano, at the Shipston-on-Stour Festival; Cwmdonkin Songs by tenor Chris O'Gorman & pianist David Pipe at Worcester College, Oxford, and by contralto Jess Dandy with pianist Ceri Owen at the Llandeilo Festival and The Gaze (Shakespeare) at St Laurence's Church, Catford, by Francesa Chiejina, soprano, and Jocelyn Freeman, piano.

Recent Publications
  • Songscapes, three pieces for piano, pub. Tŷ Cerdd, Nov. 2024.  (Around Grade 6-7 standard.)
  • Cwmdonkin Songs, three songs to texts by Dylan Thomas, pub. Tŷ Cerdd, Feb. 2024. Two versions now published:  (1) for medium voice; (2) for high voice. 
  • The Tender Branch for organ, pub. Stainer & Bell, Feb. 2024.
  • Earth Newborn, four SATB pieces to poems by Edward Thomas, pub. separately by Stainer & Bell: (i) 'The Trumpet'; (ii) 'Lights Out'; (iii) 'Bright Clouds of May'; (iv) 'After Rain'.
  • My Heart Beside for medium/high voice, viola and piano, three pieces to poems by Emily Dickinson, pub. Tŷ Cerdd. 
Works on Recent CDs  
    • Bitter-Sweet for violin and piano, on Listen!, a CD from the Kobayashi-Keith Duo, on Albany Records (USA).  
    • Sarabande from Isolation Suite, arr. for harpsichord, on Julian Perkins's CD, From Handel's Home (Delphian).
    • Ad Lucem, a 3-movement work for solo organ, played by Tom Winpenny on the organ of St Alban's Cathedral: St Albans Experience (Willowhayne Records). 
    • LIttle Duos for oboe and cor anglais, played by Penelope Smith and Nicola Hands, on the Tailleferre Ensemble's CD, There are Things to be Said (UA).
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