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Robert Hanson:
Thanksgiving
Sarah Leonard soprano ~ Johnathan Powell piano
Jane Gordon violin ~ Jan Rautio piano
Thanksgiving
Sarah Leonard soprano ~ Johnathan Powell piano
Jane Gordon violin ~ Jan Rautio piano
English composer Robert Hanson was on the staff of Dartington College of the Arts from 1974 until 1990, when he was Acting Head of Music. This disc pays tribute to two of his colleagues from that time, Roy Truby and Jack Dobbs. Thanksgiving Music is a response to the death of Truby, setting a variety of texts concerning mourning, loss and transformation. The Violin Sonata was Hanson's gift to Dobbs on his retirement from Dartington, and incorporates references to the wide range of musical interests that Dobbs possessed.
Hanson's music draws on many sources while speaking with a highly personal voice. His interest in Webern, Berg and the post-war avant-garde is connected by a lyrical impulse to other English music, and he has evolved his own methods of incorporating tonality and modality into his works.
