KAMINSKY As One
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Laura Kaminsky
Genre:
Opera
Label: Bright Shiny Things
Magazine Review Date: 09/2019
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 75
Mastering:
DDD
Catalogue Number: BSTC0127
Tracks:
Composition | Artist Credit |
---|---|
As One |
Laura Kaminsky, Composer
Fry Street Quartet Kelly Markgraf, Hannah before, Baritone Laura Kaminsky, Composer Sasha Cooke, Hannah after, Mezzo soprano Steven Osgood, Conductor |
Author: Guy Rickards
Unsurprisingly, it is As One’s subject matter that has received the most attention, relating the journey of the transgender Hannah, born a boy, to womanhood in the teeth of familial, educational and social opposition. The two singers represent Hannah’s inner monologue, the baritone her birth self – ‘Hannah Before’ – the mezzo the finally reconciled ‘Hannah After’. Both sing throughout, representing the contrasting sides of Hannah’s personality, though – as one might expect – dominance subtly shifts from male to female as the work progresses.
Part 1, comprising the Introduction and first six songs, deals with Hannah’s childhood, the recognition of her nature and her efforts to keep it secret. In Part 2 (songs 7-14), emergent adulthood brings both deeper joy and greater conflict, culminating with a ‘harrowing assault’: here, the mezzo recounts the incident counterpointed by the baritone’s listing a string of victims of even more horrendous attacks around the world. The third and concluding part is a single, extended aria, ‘Norway’ (prefigured by a snatch of Grieg in the preceding song), the refuge where Hannah finds a degree of peace.
Laura Kaminsky’s mostly luminous score elicits a radiant performance from the six performers. Sasha Cooke and Kelly Markgraf are beautifully balanced as the voices in Hannah’s head, at times inward-looking, at times reflecting the outside world, but concluding ‘as one’. The Fry Street Quartet accompany with elegance and subtlety. A remarkable achievement.
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