Composers Network- Composers Network
In the Time of Pandemic
Round about now, under more normal circumstances, you might have been expecting to
hear from us about our next concert. Sadly, for obvious reasons, Composers Network
concerts, like all other arts events, are on hold for the foreseeable future.
Like us, you may be missing going to live concerts but still want to be introduced to music
you haven’t heard before. So, we’d like to share this new music video, “In The Time Of
Pandemic” with you. We hope you will enjoy it, and find it uplifting as well as poignant and
moving.
“In The Time Of Pandemic” was written and produced under lockdown in Eastbourne and
Wisconsin, USA. The music, by Eastbourne’s Clive Whitburn, is a setting for A Cappella
voices of a beautiful poem by American writer Kitty O’Meara. When Clive came across her
poem on-line, he knew immediately how he wanted to set it. It took a few days to track
Kitty down, but eventually he found her via Facebook. He was absolutely delighted when,
after she had listened to some of his music, she agreed enthusiastically to let him set her
words.
In Clive’s words, “once the piece had been composed, the hard work started!”
He invited the members of The New Network Singers to take part in a virtual choir. He sent them the score and asked them to record their parts into their smartphones or computers and email them to him. He then edited all 30+ recordings together to make a choir.
It didn’t stop there. Clive also invited two Eastbourne artists, Stephanie Grainger and Ray
Burnside to make the video to accompany the soundtrack. He hopes you’ll agree that their
wonderfully evocative images and drawings add hugely to the narrative and complement
the words and music beautifully. In a way, this has continued the Composers Network
tradition of using visuals alongside our music involving local artists in our concerts.
If you enjoy the video, please share the link with whoever you feel might be interested.
We’d like to see it get as wide an audience as possible.
To watch, click here
Meanwhile, we are beginning to formulate plans for a live concert, at some point in the
future, when such things become possible again.
For now, we send you our very best wishes and hope that you and your loved ones stay safe
and well through these very strange and rather dystopian times.
Melody, Tim and Clive
Composers Network