The Purcell Symphony Orchestra at Cadogan Hall, 6 Feb 2023 - Speare: The Secret of Rain

Simon Speare - The Secret of Rain
Conductor Paul Hoskins
VIOLIN I
Francisca, Shlomo, Henrietta, Louis, James, Jessica, Tori, Yu-Wei, Goulwenna, Rebecca, Shlomi, Sofiia, Sonya, Madeleine, Polina
VIOLIN II
Hana, Barbare, Gabriella, Dominic-Lucian, Antonia, Alexander, Ruize, Jacqueline, Dexter, Isaac, Martin, Malena, Miruna
VIOLA
Iklim, Fiona, Mina, Danya, Minsuk, Theadora, Tifany, Yagmur, JiHyo
CELLO
Lindsey, Sebastian, Emma, Da In, Ivan, Ivanna, Oscar, Jennifer, Ella, Jessie, Ken, Teresa, Paddini (Jayden), Yeju
DOUBLE BASS
Louis, Johnathan
*Cathy Elliott
*Fabián Eduardo Galeana Meza
HARP
Aaron, Rowena
FLUTE/PICCOLO
Suanoi, Arunima, Tom, Tessa
OBOE/COR ANGLAIS
Alana, Ekaterina, Rhea
CLARINET/BASS CLARINET
Birce, Marina, Zaki
BASSOON/CONTRABASSOON
Sacha
Ostap
*Eva Serksnaite
FRENCH HORN
Chloe
Alex
*Tim Ellis
*Joel Ashford
TRUMPET
Freddie
Ted
Phoebe
*Dan Taylor
TROMBONE/BASS TROMBONE
Alex
Belinda
Skye
*Ruth Molins
*Ed Hilton
TUBA
Noah
TIMPANI & PERCUSSION
Joshua
Ali
Hannah
Megan
Anthony
*Ryan Hepburn
PIANO
Samuel
CELESTE
Ozel
*Member of staff/visting professional
Simon Speare: The Secret of Rain
When working with primary school teachers, I always try to link children’s composition projects with other areas of the curriculum. I came across the story ‘Lila and the Secret of Rain’ by David Conway and Jude Daly whilst working in a primary school in Tower Hamlets, East London. The story worked so well as a catalyst for music making, that I thought I’d use it as the basis for a piece of my own. Briefly, the story tells of a Kenyan village affected by drought in which a young girl, Lila, overhears her mother and grandfather having a very serious and worried conversation about the situation. Lila decides to do something based on a story her grandfather told her about the secret of rain. She must find the closest place to the sky and tell the saddest stories she can, to make the sky cry. She sets off in the cool of night under cover of the stars and finds the highest mountain she can. She climbs to the top and tells her stories. The sky blackens, lightning ensues, raindrops start to fall, and she runs back down to her village where dancing and celebration are taking place. Important musical starting points for me were central African polyrhythmic polyphony and a twelve-note pitch set made up of four diatonic triads: C minor, D major, E major, and B flat minor; the first three representing a stepwise climb (ascent and descent being a big feature of the piece).
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