by Caroline Besterman | Mar 25, 2018 | Choral pieces
Caz undertook a commission from St Chad’s Music Festival and Shrewsbury Bookfest to compose and direct her World War 1 songs for choir. A large-scale concert held in Shrewsbury’s Theatre Severn, ‘The Pity of War’, took place in November 2018. The first half of the evening showcased Caz’s compositions ‘In Flanders Fields’ and other songs. The second featured a new work by top composer Bob Chilcott. With almost one hundred young local singers, Caz directed the ‘Bookfest Remembers Choir’ in a performance which met with great acclaim and was recorded and broadcast by BBC Radio. The concert formed part of a Shropshire-wide programme to commemorate the end of the Great War. Scroll down ‘Testimonials’ to view feedback for this...
by Caroline Besterman | Mar 25, 2018 | Choral pieces
The five poems of this set were given their first London performance by the excellent Etcetera Civil Service Choir. The commemorative concert took place in the Horseguards Parade. Director Stephen Hall, commented: ‘We very much enjoyed working on the pieces and performing them, and they were definitely appreciated by the audience. We are likely to perform them again this...
by Caroline Besterman | Mar 25, 2018 | FIlm and TV
In September I was invited to play the string tracks for the beautiful song ‘Version of Me’ by ex-Spice Girl Melanie C. Produced by the talented Tom Wilding, Melanie C’s song hit the charts for months. I played all the tracks which were layered up to create a rich sound, using both violin and viola for extra...
by Caroline Besterman | Mar 25, 2018 | FIlm and TV, Instrumental
2015: Bookfest Remembers is featured in Shropshire Council’s Video ‘The Pity of War’ – see Caz Besterman explaining more about the project at 7.00 – 7.46....
by Caroline Besterman | Feb 9, 2015 | Instrumental
‘Pictures of Bristol’ is a three-movement suite for symphony orchestra. It depicts three Bristol scenes: the Avon Gorge, the Downs, and the Harbour. These were written for the tenth anniversary celebrations of the Brunel Sinfonia in March 2015, and performed in the Victoria Rooms concert hall in Bristol. Premiere: The Brunel Sinfonia, The Victoria Rooms, Bristol, March 22nd 2015 (Conductor: Mark Gateshill) Programme Notes: Movement 1, ‘The Gorge’, begins with an angular motif featuring large intervallic leaps. The metre of this main theme fluctuates between three and four in a bar. The woodwind first play the theme, with strings echoing it in turn. A second theme is heard shortly afterwards in the celli and then with an answering phrase in the woodwind. As this second theme is passed around the orchestra, offbeat fragments of the first are heard in the woodwind. Rapid modulations serve to further illustrate the gorge’s rocky, changeable nature. After a recap of the first section, there is a clarinet solo accompanied by punctuated ‘col legno’ strings. After this, the music becomes graver and the metre changes to 4/2, with a new minor theme heard first in the brass and then adopted by strings. The woodwind interjects with fragments of the first theme which become increasingly frequent and insistent. Finally, the first theme returns in full for the movement’s conclusion. Movement 2, ‘At the Harbour’ seeks to portray a more mellow and serene mood, evoking Bristol’s waterfront. The main theme is an elegant, major melody despite some unpredictable changes metre. Soft pulsing crotchets in the accompaniment outline the harmony. The woodwind enter with a second theme, also...
