Two Seven Two One represents the number of New Zealand dead in the Gallipoli campaign.
This battle probably more than any other before or since has shaped the national identity of New Zealand. The supreme sacrifice of these brave men is remembered on ANZAC Day (25 April) each year.
Two Seven Two One was written for the Moscow-based group ensemble XXI and their director, Lygia O’Riordan, for its première performance in the ANZAC service held in Moscow in 2003. The work is reflective, with occasional outbursts of raw anger. The mood is pensive but always the undercurrents shift so that unease pervades the work until the final outpouring of an anthem-like motif towards the close. Even as this reaches a powerful grounding on the flattened supertonic, relief of tension is not far away and the piece closes harmoniously and quietly. However, even then the interval of a second between E and F# high up in the violins still keeps it from settling completely.
Biography
Patrick Shepherd Photo: SOUNZ Centre for New Zealand Music
Patrick Shepherd has called New Zealand home since moving here from England in 1991. He is an accomplished composer, conductor, performer and teacher, and he is well-known for his work in the community and with young people. He is passionate about new music, music education, technology and creativity. His works have been performed in the UK, USA, Germany, Russia, South Korea, China and Australia as well as regular performances and broadcasts in New Zealand.
Patrick has conducted many orchestras and choirs, including the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, Christchurch Youth Orchestra, Garden City Symphony Orchestra and NASDA chorus and he is currently conductor of the Camerata Strings and the Christchurch Schools’ Music Festival Symphony Orchestra. He is also the Musical Director of the Festival. Patrick has also delivered promotional talks and lectures on New Zealand music both overseas and nationally and is a music critic for The Press.
Patrick is also an Honorary Antarctic Arts Fellow, having travelled to Antarctica early in 2004, and much of his current creative work is related to that trip. Somewhat paradoxically, his experience in Antarctica led him to research the medical condition synaesthesia (altered sensory perception), conducting research projects at local and national levels within New Zealand and presenting papers at conferences across Australasia and Europe.
Recent works include Moment Magnitude (2015) for String Quartet, Lithosphere – second movement (2015) and an opera titled Poles Apart (2016).
Patrick is currently a senior lecturer at the University of Canterbury.
Recorded 12 April 2017, Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington by RNZ Concert for 2017 NZ Composer Sessions.
Producer: David McCaw
Engineer: Graham Kennedy
