Thomas Moore
Thomas Moore set verses of Irish dispossession, loss and resistance to old Irish tunes in his Irish Melodies. Songs such as The Minstrel Boy and The Last Rose of Summer remain among the most enduring of those airs.
An Irish poet and lyricist, Moore is remembered chiefly for the Melodies, in which familiar traditional tunes carry plainspoken lines of longing, loyalty and farewell. The Minstrel Boy and The Last Rose of Summer travel easily into chamber, brass and song programmes, where their shapes stay clear and their sentiment stays direct. Beyond the songs he also wrote romantic narrative verse and sharp political satire, but the Melodies are the work that still sounds in the catalogue.
Compositions by Thomas Moore appear on
Where have you been all these years?
Capturing the joy of shared music-making, this sublime new release from Claire Patti (vocal/harp), Louise Godwin (cello), and Tony Gould (piano) is a tribute to musical friendship and admiration.
The Glass Soldier
Music from the play The Glass Soldier. Based on a true story, Hannie Rayson's The Glass Soldier is a deep, sincere tribute to two generations of Australians who fought in the Great War, that had little, but gave everything.