photo by Charlie Lightening
Listen in as Paul McCartney makes his initial foray into the world of dance with the forthcoming release Ocean’s Kingdom, commissioned for the New York City Ballet and performed by the London Classical Orchestra.
The hour-long score — featuring a quartet of movements called “Ocean’s Kingdom,” “Hall of Dance,” “Imprisonment” and “Moonrise” — isn’t McCartney’s first classical piece, of course. He has done four previous orchestral works, the most recent of which was Ecce Cor Meum (Behold My Heart), a 2006 composition for chorus and orchestra in four movements, which earned the Classical BRIT Award. It is, however, the first time he has composed a piece for ballet.
“What was interesting was writing music that meant something expressively rather than just writing a song,” McCartney said in pre-release materials. “Trying to write something that expressed an emotion – so you have fear, love, anger, sadness to play with and I found that exciting and challenging.”
McCartney collaborated on Ocean’s Kingdom with the New York City Ballet’s master in chief Peter Martins. The striking artwork that accompanies this release seems to suggest an urban skyline, but is actually a digital readout of the notes from the score.
Ocean’s Kingdom, recorded in June and conducted by John Wilson, will be released on Oct. 4 by Hear Music/Telarc. The ballet’s premiere is set for Thursday, Sept. 22, as part of the NYCB’s fall-gala opening night for the 2011-12 season. The album is available for pre-order below …
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