Mourned from Afar
Mourned from Afar is a work for brass band, soprano and baritone. It is intended as a requiem for the times we are going through in the pandemic that started in 2020. In addition, it is a personal testament to the emotions and struggles that the composer himself went through during this time.
The text was written by Monique Bronkhorst and used in the work in three languages. At the moment there is only the Swiss version with solos in German, French and Italian and accompaniment by brass band. This version will premiere in September 2022 by the Swiss Army Brass Band conducted by Philipp Werlen. There is also the option of a single language version.
The work consists of the following parts:
- Prologue: an opening for brass band,
- Healthcare Heroes: solo for soprano,
- Transition 1: interlude for brass band,
- Loneliness: solo for baritone,
- Transition 2: intermezzo for brass band,
- Earth: duet for soprano and baritone,
- Transition 3: interlude for brass band,
- Lament: solo for soprano,
- Transition 4: interlude for brass band,
- Solidarity: solo for baritone,
- Transition 5: interlude for brass band,
- What if: duet for soprano and baritone,
- Epilogue: finale for brass band.
The transitions form the connecting element between the different sung parts.
The title refers to part of the text: “mourned from a distance, loved, missed” from the Lament.
Specifications
About the composer
Geert Jan Kroon
I am Geert Jan Kroon (1981): a motivator, inspirator and creative optimist. My goal is to inspire musicians in such a way that they show the best of themselves and more. In my work as a conductor, composer and coach I always start from possibilities; not of limitations. A conductor creates the conditions for making beautiful music and from that role I want to facilitate musicians to use their qualities and talents in such a way that they lift the entire orchestra. I studied Art, Culture and Media at the University of Groningen with a master’s degree in Musicology in Utrecht (diploma 2012). Since then I have developed my own style as a conductor, composer and musical entrepreneur. The ideas of the conductor Benjamin Zander have inspired me in this. As artistic director of the project Lûd fan de Middelsee, I have experienced that it is possible to motivate 250 musicians to give an enchanting concert in the open air for 40 minutes. Lûd fan de Middelsee’s motto was “reinvent yourself”, a slogan that suits me well, because I am always looking for growth, development and new ideas to try out. I also want to stimulate that passion in others. As a coach, I challenge conductors, composers and musicians to look at their own work from a different perspective. I provide tools and open doors to new approaches. New opportunities arise for me through my study of compositions at the ArtEZ conservatory. In my compositions, I like to use techniques from contemporary music that are less common for concert bands, fanfare bands and brass bands. This gives my music its own sound and it is still accessible to the general public. In short, I want to get the best out of myself, the musicians I work with and I want to inspire colleagues with new perspectives. But above all, I want to inspire people with my passion for music. Or as Zander puts it: success is measured by how many glittering eyes you see around you.