Helen Roe Composer
Compositions
ASH WEDNESDAY c. 20' 1975
for piano
First performed by Ronald Lumsden, BBC Young Composers'
Forum, Hull University, 1976
DIE BLAUE BLUME c. 25' 1975
for soprano, ob/cor a., clt/bass, perc. (1 player), vla and 'cello
Text: from Goethe's Mignon poems
Recorded for BBC Music in our Time by Elise Ross
and the Nash Ensemble, cond. Lionel Friend, 1978
LIGHTENING'S -
for sop.saxophone, horn, perc. (2 players), vln and double bass
Commissioned by Jesus College, Oxford, and first performed there
by members of the Durham University New Music Ensemble, 1976
CLOSE BY THE PLACE WHERE... c. 20' 1978
for flute/picc/alto, clarinet/Eb/bass, viola and 'cello
Commissioned by Gemini with funds provided by South West Arts.
First performed at the Arnolfini Gallery, Bristol, 1978. Recorded for
BBC Music in our Time by Gemini, cond. Peter Wiegold, 1980
STRING QUARTET c. 18' 1980
Commissioned by the Radcliffe Trust. First performed by the
Allegri String Quartet, Hull University, 1980
NOTES TOWARDS A DEFINITION c. 8' 1981
for violin
First performed as the test piece by all competitors in the Carl Flesch
International Violin Competition, London 1982.
Published by Stainer & Bell
PAPER/ SCISSORS -
Commissioned by the ICA, and first performed there
by Elisabeth Perry and Alexander Balanescu, 1983
VERBUM SUPERNUM PRODIENS / c. 12' 1983
CONDITOR ALME SIDERUM
for flute and guitar
Commissioned by Clive Conway and Gerald Garcia with funds
provided by the Greater London Arts Association. First
performed in the October Gallery, Holborn, 1983
FIVE EDINGTON MONODIES c.18' 1985
for oboe or clarinet
Commissioned by the Edington Festival and first performed there
by Hilary Dodds (oboe), 1985
Published in Catherine Pluygers’s book,
‘Music for Solo Oboe written by Women Composers’.
AND THE ANGEL DEPARTED FROM HER c. 18’ 1986
for mezzo soprano, flute/alto/bass, horn, marimba and
string trio
Text: Helen Roe
First performed by Jane Manning and her Minstrels in
the Purcell Room, London, 1989
THIS IS THE GARDEN c. 9' 1987
for tenor, flute, clarinet and string quartet
Text: e e cummings
Composed for students at King's College, London. First
performed by Niall Morris, Wolfson College, Oxford, 1987
MY MIND'S WHITE TRUTH c. 9' 1988
for piano
First performed by Richard Leigh Harris, Holywell Music Room,
Oxford, 1989. Recorded for BBC Radio 3 by Andrew Ball, 1993.
Published by the Frontier Press in the British Contemporary
Music Anthology 1996
JOYFUL YOUR COMPLETE FEARLESS AND PURE LOVE c. 4' 1988
for tenor, clarinet and hand drums
Text: e e cummings
First performed by Nigel Simpson, Ian Mitchell and Sophie Fuller,
Holywell Music Room, Oxford, 1989
SOME EPISODES IN THE HISTORY OF MIRANDA c. 90' 1990
AND CALIBAN
for mezzo sop., baritone, narrator, ensemble (20 players) and tape
Libretto: Russell Hoban
Excerpts first performed by Christine Botes, Richard Suart and Chris de Souza
with Gemini, cond. David Syrus, in St. John's, Smith Square, London 1990
TWO QUEENS OF THE ILE OF BRITAIN c. 20' 1991
music theatre piece for 2 sopranos, harpsichord and bells
Text: from the writings of Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots
Commissioned by Alison Smart and Sara Stowe with funds provided by
Southern Arts. First performed by them in St. Peter's College, Oxford, 1991
DIVIDE LIGHT IF YOU DARE c. 11' 1992
for clarinet/bass, piano and string quartet
Composed for the Oxford Academy of Music and first performed
in the Holywell Music Room, Oxford, 1992. Recorded by Gemini
for broadcast on Channel 4, 1994
THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME c. 4' 1994
for dramatic soprano, trumpet in C and organ
Commissioned by St. James's, Piccadilly, and first performed
there by Heidi Pegler, Chris Pigram and Ian Watson, 1994
IN MY COUNTRY -
In my country for solo soprano Text: Jackie Kay
Missing Persons Song for mezzo, tenor, baritone, clt/bass, tpt, perc, vla and double bass
Text: Katie Campbell
Lullaby for mezzo, soprano, clt, viola and gender barung (2 players) Text: Katie Cambell
I didn't used to be a racist for sop, tenor, 2 baritones, tenor sax., perc and gender barung (2 pl.) Text: Jackie Kay
The Old Nag's Diatribe for mezzo, piano, perc, violin and double bass Text: Jo Shapcott
Commissioned by the Women's Playhouse Trust, dir. Jules Wright
OUT OF THE BABYLON OF MY ANGER c. 32' 1995
for large orchestra
Gemini Fellowship work
THE SHEPHERD'S RACE c. 12' 1996
for string orchestra
Commissioned by the Oxford Concerto Orchestra with funds
provided by Southern Arts. First performed Blewbury Church, 1996
SEVEN AGAINST THEBES c. 19' 1997
for brass quartet (2 tpts in Bb, horn and trombone)
To be recorded by members of the Composers' Ensemble, for
the cover disc of "Classic CD" magazine
THE SEVEN VOICES OF NIKERATOS c. 31' 1998
for counter-
Text: from the plays of Aeschylos, Sophocles and Euripides
Commissioned by the Oxford Company of Musicians with Nicholas
Clapton (counter-
performed (cond. Roe) in the Holywell Music Room, Oxford, 1998
BEYOND ANGER c. 18' 1999
for orchestra
(A drastically revised version of the Gemini Fellowship piece).
First performed by the English Northern Philharmonia, cond.
Elgar Howarth, University of York, 1999
CELTIC BLESSING c. 2' 1999
for solo soprano
Written for Simon and Alison Street, and first performed at their
Silver Wedding anniversary celebration, by Harriet Fraser (soprano),
in St. Mary's Church, Kidlington, 1999
AND STILL TO THINGS ETERNAL LOOK c. 12' 2000
for violin and piano
Written in memory of Gordon Roe, 5.1.32 -
TWO WAYS OF WORKING WITH STONE c. 12' 30" 2001
for orchestra
POURQUOI? c. 4’ 2002
for soprano and piano
Text: Verlaine
Commissioned by Alison Smart and Katharine Durran.
First performed by them in the Purcell Room, London,
13th July 2004, and recorded on their CD “New French
Song” (MSV CD92100).
UBI CARITAS ET AMOR c. 3’ 2004
for SATB and organ
Composed for the choir and organist of the Church of
St Peter & St Paul, King’s Sutton.
ANTIGONE VARIATIONS c. 13’ 2007
for chamber orchestra
First performed by the University of York Sinfonietta
(cond. Jonathan Timms) in the Sir Jack Lyons Concert
Hall, University of York, 25th June 2007.
EVER AT PLAY IN HIS PRESENCE c. 6’ 2009
for viola
Written in memory of Sophie Hamilton, 19.10.09 – 27.11.09
To be first performed by Aliye Cornish in the Jacqueline du Pré
Music Room, Oxford, 23rd March 2010.
KING’S SUTTON MASS c. 9’ 2011
Composed for the choir of the Church of
St Peter & St Paul, King’s Sutton.