Nature’s Dance is a symphonic concerto that evokes a modern pastorale tale, in all of its grit, steel and industrial mechanisations. In two parts, this concerto explores what would be natural opposites: organic green landscapes with the man-made greys of factories and power plants. At a glance, they make for a powerful and impactful juxtaposition, the harp being a symbol of folklore and the mystique of nature while the vastness of the orchestra representing the mechanisms found in the industrial complex. Yet, after moving to Flintshire, I saw them dramatically side-by-side, directly inspiring this concerto, and wider narrative of the work.

The first part, entitled Mechanical Dawn features two movements, a pastoral and scherzo, that run without a break. In this part, the music depicts an industrial environment, filled with metallic clangs and murky residue. The first movement is a pastorale dance that is filled with sighing motifs in the double basses and oboe, with the harp contrasting this with luscious lines and sparkling figuration. The second movement entitled, The Factory, is a scherzo and draws on my love of repetitive and cyclical rhythms, evoking the whirring of machinery as it hammers the musical material into shape before a dramatic conclusion, where the harp is submerged into the orchestra.

The second part, in contrast, is a reflection on industrialisation’s impact on nature and how in the right circumstances begin to heal, being reborn anew. This part begins with a lament based on a chaccone, entitled The Earth Weeps for Rejuvenation, drawing on the same melodic material of the first movement it depicts a broken land, ravaged for its natural resources. Revolving around only four chords (representing the four elements of nature), the harmony begins to bleed and seep into each other, creating an oozing and ominous tension. Only after an impassioned climax by harp and orchestra does this tension only resolve, naturally segueing into the harp cadenza, acting as a bridge between the movements.

The final movement is a frenetic gigue bursting with life and energy, depicting the rebirth and healing of nature. In this finale, the solo harp and orchestra jostle for the spotlight, warping and twisting the reoccurring theme in different directions. From virtuosic solo passages in the harp, to broad and expansive orchestral moments the soloist and orchestra compete for the final say. As the music progresses, so does the energy with each iteration getting more frenetic and desperate as the soloist and ensemble compete for superiority. The work concludes with the harp and orchestra reconciled, with the final iteration of the theme triumphantly proclaimed in the trumpets bringing our journey through factories and

hillsides, to a dramatic conclusion.