Penumbral Shadow [chamber orchestra] by Lisa Cheney

This is a live recording with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Tiyani Lu. Recorded by the ABC on February 5, 2019 at the Iwaki Auditorium in Melbourne and shared with permission.

Penumbral Shadow was commissioned by the MSO for the 2018 Cybec 21st Century Composers' Program.

Program Note:
There are many types of shadows. The most famous shadows are witnessed during a solar and lunar eclipse when the moon’s shadow is cast on the earth, or the earth’s shadow falls on the moon. The ‘penumbra’ is the term for the special shaded outer region of the shadow cast by an opaque object. I have recently begun to find shadows a musical inspiration, an occasion for awe and gratitude. Where does a shadow begin and end? I am fascinated by the beauty that emerges from a shadows ‘perishability’, its fleeting moment in the spotlight, forever moving away from and towards light and darkness. The Japanese have a saying, ‘Mono no aware’, literally ‘the pathos of things’. It is used to describe an awareness of the sad or tragic beauty of impermanence and perishability, and it was present in my mind throughout the composition process. The Penumbral Shadow draws its inspiration from this notion of shadows, of light, darkness and fleeting beauty and seeks to explore this in music.

For more information or to contact the composer visit: www.lisacheney.com.au