As shade to shadow

Shade is the absence of direct sunlight; shadow is the darkness made on a surface when a person is between the surface and the sunlight. This piece considers the human condition - the dark and the light - and humanity's effect on the world, our long shadow contrasting with nature's often beneficent shade. The viola, much under-used, is the perfect companion for the versatile cello. There is much to-ing and fro-ing in this work - concern, questions, anxiety - and hints of the light too.

Commissioned by the Kapoor Chamber Concert Series and premièred there in 2012.

Musicians on the recording: Viola - Dorothea Vogel / Cello - Vanessa Lucas-Smith