Only Darkness and Shadows

This composition was originally written in 2003 for soprano and instrumental ensemble, commissioned by the Concertgebouw Brugge. At the request of the Beethoven Academy and De Singel, Wim Henderickx arranged this work in 2004 for an orchestra consisting of solo woodwind and brass players, supplemented by piano, percussion and string orchestra. In 2010, the composer created a version for soprano and piano and later also a version for mezzo-soprano and piano. Wim’s musical assistant, Diederik Glorieux, prepared the version for mezzo-soprano and orchestra at the request of Casco Phil and Benjamin Haemhouts, who gave it its world premiere in June 2024 with Kadi Jürgens as mezzo-soprano.

The work contains five songs based on Estonian poems by Triin Soomets. The five songs evoke different atmospheres. The entire song cycle is based on contrasting elements. The first song, “Only darkness and shadows...”, starts with a dark, mysterious low sound and evolves into a colouristic, almost spectral sound. The song ends with a rhythmic ostinato. The second song, “I remain glittering in your eye...”, has a playful and dancing character. The third song, “For centuries...”, is an ironic, almost cabaret-like song with a repetitive musical structure. The fourth song, “Come to my grave...”, is a sarcastic, dark and gloomy musical evocation. In the second part of this song, the atmosphere becomes more introspective, ending with a chorale in the horn and bassoon. This song ends with a descending lament bass. The fifth song, “And I am there...”, is an ethereal musical evocation where time and space fade away. The entire composition is based on very strict serial techniques that organise the musical material, taking into account the inspiration that the poems provided the composer.