Beth Wiseman

Former Secretary of the NWCA

 

We are greatly saddened to announce that Beth Wiseman, formerly Secretary to the NWCA, died in 2007 following a long and courageous battle against cancer.

Her music lives on.

born in Leeds in 1951

grew up in Devon.

studied with Alexander Goehr

much influenced by her study of the Australian composer David Lumsdaine.

has taught in 6th Form College-, University and schools.

drawn to composition with text and other external stimuli such as paintings, photography, dance and theatre.

often using mixed media: live performers alongside taped sounds and live electronics, as well as

extra-musical elements.

 List of Principal Compositions (in reverse chronology)

 

* denotes recording available on CD

 

Birdsongs In Silence

Prima Facie PFCD001, issued March 2010

 

Ama No Gawa (2006)

Fl, cl, vn, vc, perc, pno.  6m

f.p. Kokoro /Mark Forkgen (SW Composers Day), Poole Lighthouse, 28 Jan 2006, Wiltshire Music Centre 18 June 2006, Bristol University Nov 2006

 

* October (2001)

For David Lumsdaine

Mezzo, recorder, vc, pno.  3m

Text: Ryoken. f.p. Wiltshire Music Centre 24 October 2008

October refers to Lumsdaine’s 70th birthday (on 31st), also Wiseman’s 50th (21st) in 2001

 

* Dances On My Grave (2000)

Recorder and string quartet.  9m

CD (North West Composers)

 

* Birdsongs (1999)

Mezzo, oboe d’amore, viola, harp. On 7m

Text ‘bird on a briar’ (medieval) and ‘humble one (gifted with . . .”, e.e.cummings

f.p. Okeanos,  Kings College London 11 July 2001, Wiltshire Music Centre 8 Feb 2002

 

* Silent (1999)

Solo oboe  d’amore (including spoken part from ‘Silent, but…’ by Tsuboi Shigeji) 7m

f.p. Jinny Shaw

 

* Myriad Suite (1999)

concert duo from Myriad, 15m

 

Myriad (1998)

Oboe and harp with dancers centred on the eponymous sculpture by Katharine Dowson. Commissioned by Okeanos  ca 30m

f.p. Whitworth Art Gallery (Sculpture Court) Manchester 6,11,18,23,27,30 October 1998, touring to Nottingham Castle, Wingfield etc. 1999-2000

 

* Blow of Your Breath / Chitaka (1997)

Two songs for mezzo and recorder (in MS) to texts of Indian mystic poets. (or, originally sketched in part for mezzo and clarinet).  Performing edition by GP 2008.

1. Blow of Thy  Breath ca 4m

2. Chitaka ca 3 m [the rainbird]

f.p. Alison Wells and John Turner, Whitworth Hall Manchester, 16 April 1997

 

Ad marginem (1993-4)

large ensemble of 2fl, cl, hn, harp, string quintet.

16m  MS score and parts (later, first 73 bars typeset)

f.p. Manchester University, dir GP Feb 1994

 

Two Songs from the Japanese (1978, revised 2003)

For Pat Barnett (1942-1988)

f.p. Manchester Univ. NME/Poole with Teresa Shaw (mezzo), ca.1978

     1    Rocking (formerly Hammock)

Mezzo with sextet of fl, ob, cl, vla, piano

Text: Hammock, Horiguchi Diagaku

2 Liu ch’e

Mezzo with sextet of fl, ob, cl, vla, perc, piano

 

Brothel Song (to a poem of Ichikawa Takuboku) (1976)

Music-theatre scene in club, early hours of the morning, for contralto, fl, alto fl, alto sax, tpt, 2 violas, vibraphone, percussion, mistuned piano, dbass.  11pp Panopus pencil MS. 7m.   Possibly performed informally, Leeds 1976

Incidental music:

 

Pericles (1998)

Six scenes for Tape. Parrs Wood School  Autumn? 1998

 

I, Claudius – small ensemble [lost]

 

Blood Wedding (Lorca) – Two songs with clarinet and piano, MS, ca 1984

 

The Fire-Raisers – tape

 

At The Warehouse (stringmelt) (2004)

 

Entr’acte from Les Jeux Sont Faits (unfinished opera, libretto adapted from Sartre)

String quartet plus dbass [unperformed]