Tann premieres new work

Hilary Tann, right, is pictured with members of the youth orchestra and Member of Parliament Claire Curtis Thomas at the "Shorelines" premiere.

Close

Enlarge Hilary Tann, right, is pictured with members of the youth orchestra and Member of Parliament Claire Curtis Thomas at the "Shorelines" premiere.

"Shorelines," a new work composed by Hilary Tann, the John Howard Payne Professor of Music, received its world premiere in July by the Sefton Young Musicians in St Faith's Church, Crosby, England, to a capacity audience.

Tann, who attended the inaugural performance, was commissioned to write the piece for Sefton Youth String Orchestra, and she was inspired by the presence of prehistoric footprints now visible on the Sefton coastline at the edge of the West Lancashire plain.

The piece evokes a scene of sand and surf, using strings and percussion. Hand percussionists improvised the tracks made by humans and animals some 4,000 years ago.

"The day after the orchestra concert, I was invited to the shoreline at Formby to see the ancient footprints," Tann said. She was accompanied to the site by Gordon Roberts, a noted local historian and archaeologist who was largely responsible for recognizing the significance of the footprints.

"It was great fun," Tann said. "Mr. Roberts is an enthusiastic interpreter of the past and eagerly shares his knowledge with all who are interested."

Tann, who came to the United States as a young postgraduate, is from South Wales.