Episode 4
Donald Macleod focuses on Amy Beach's experiences at the idyllic Macdowell Colony, an artists' retreat. Including a selection of evocative chamber works.
By the early 1920s, Amy Beach was an American musical institution - albeit somewhat steeped in the Victorian era. Who would have expected, then, that aged 54, the composer would begin a remarkable new direction in her musical life, centred upon the idyllic Macdowell Colony - an artists' retreat deep in the New Hampshire woods.
There, Amy Beach composed an outpouring of evocative chamber works, fusing her own lyrical expression with more modern elements to create a uniquely personal musical style. Donald Macleod introduces a pair of pieces evoking the Hermit Thrush's morning and evening calls, as well as major pieces for string quartet and one of the composer's most passionate songs.
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Music Played
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Amy Beach
Hermit Thrush At Morn, Op.92, no.2 (1922)
Performers: Virginia Eskin (piano)
- KOCH 372542.
- 10.
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Amy Beach
Theme and Variations for Flute and String Quartet: I. Adagio - Allegro Moderato
Performers: Ambache: Elizabeth Layton (violin), Ruth Ehrlich (violin), Martin Outram (viola), Naomi Butterworth (cello)
- CHANDOS CHAN9752.
- 1.
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Amy Beach
Theme and Variations for Flute and String Quartet: II. Adagio Espressivo
Performers: Ambache: Elizabeth Layton (violin), Ruth Ehrlich (violin), Martin Outram (viola), Naomi Butterworth (cello)
- CHANDOS CHAN9752.
- 2.
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Amy Beach
Theme and Variations for Flute and String Quartet: III. Allegro Agitato - Adagio Come Prim
Performers: Ambache: Elizabeth Layton (violin), Ruth Ehrlich (violin), Martin Outram (viola), Naomi Butterworth (cello)
- CHANDOS CHAN9752.
- 3.
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Amy Beach
Rendezvous, Op.120 (1928)
Performers: Jörg Waschinski (male soprano), Christiane Meininger (flute), Rainer Gepp (piano)
- PHOENIX LC18960.
- 5.
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Amy Beach
String Quartet in One Movement, Op.89 (1929)
Performers: Archaeus Quartet
- LORELT LNT114.
- 5.
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Amy Beach
Hermit Thrush At Eve, Op.92, no.1 (1922) 4.13
Performers: Virginia Eskin (piano)
- KOCH 372542.
- 9.
Broadcast
- Thu 5 Aug 201012:00BBC Radio 3
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