Friends! June 30, 2022 (right around the corner!) is the last day to download my piece "Who Has Seen the Wind?" FOR FREE!!! As many copies as you'd like. Get it now, right here: https://www.rhinegold.co.uk/rhinegold-publishing/magazines/choir-organ/new-music/#downloads
(scroll to the bottom of the Rhinegold page for the last file. If you need further help, see detailed instructions here)
Now, for some context about the piece!
Last summer, I was delighted to join the cohort of composers supported by the Choir & Organ Magazine New Music Series. This year, we had the honor of collaborating with VOCES8 to create our works. At the time I penned this piece, I was knee-deep in edits for my big project of the year, so I would clear my mind by going for long walks in my beautiful neighborhood full of trees. It was from these trees that the music for this striking text arose:
"Who has seen the wind?
Neither I nor you:
But when the leaves hang trembling
The wind is passing thro'.
Who has seen the wind?
Neither you nor I:
But when the trees bow down their heads
The wind is passing by."
-Sing-Song: A Nursery Rhyme Book by Christina G. Rossetti, 1893
Some years ago, I had a dream of a rising motif in the Carnatic raga Charukesi. All of these voices were singing this in waves as they surrounded me, haunting me in the best possible way. This motif, of the swaras p-d-n-S-R-G-M-P made its way into the piece, too.
In November 2021, I had the pleasure of working with the fabulous artists of the VOCES8 US Scholars program when they recorded this piece for ClassicalMPR and YourClassical. Here is their gorgeous rendition:
Here we are working on the piece in the Central Lutheran Church of Saint Paul, MN:
For more about the influences behind the piece and the ways that I work, here is a print interview with the lovely Matthew Power of Choir & Organ Magazine: https://www.rhinegold.co.uk/choir_organ/new-music-series-shruthi-rajasekars-who-has-seen-the-wind/ . We spoke about it more, including the power of the supernatural, in our video interview, too: https://youtu.be/_APvOnaJDJQ?t=1099
I LOVE being able to give something for free!! "Who Has Seen the Wind?" is available through Choir & Organ until this Thursday, June 30, 2022. Go, go, go! https://www.rhinegold.co.uk/rhinegold-publishing/magazines/choir-organ/new-music/#downloads