Dreamscape (1977) 12’
for mezzo-soprano and piano (without text)
FP: 12 December 1977 Purcell Room, London
Meriel and Peter Dickinson
Five Polish Peasant Songs (1940, reconstructed 1945, rev.1959) 13’
[5 Polskich Pieśni Wiejskich]
for soprano (or treble) voices, 2 flutes, 2 clarinets, and bass clarinet
Text: in Polish and English (anon)
FP: 1945 Kraków Stanis|aw Skrowaczewski, conductor
These charming songs constitute one of only three surviving works from the pre-1945 era. All Panufnik’s manuscripts were destroyed by fire in the 1944 Warsaw uprising.
Hommage à Chopin (1949, rev.1955) 15’
Five vocalises for soprano and piano
FP: 1949 Salle Gaveau, Paris Irene Joachim and Paul Collard
see also Works for soloist(s) and orchestra
Love Song 5’
for mezzo and harp or piano (1976)
or mezzo, harp or piano, and strings (arr.1991)
Text: Sir Philip Sydney (E)
FP: 18 October 1982 Wigmore Hall, London
Helen Watkins, David Watkins
FP (string version): 28 November 1991
Wellington Museum, London Meriel Dickinson, London Musici,
Mark Stephenson
Prayer to the Virgin of Skempe (1990) 2’
[Modlitwa do Matki Boskiej Skępskiej]
song for solo voice or choir in unison with organ, piano or
instrumental accompaniment
Text: Jerzy Pietrkiewicz (P)
FP: 5 November 1991 (composer’s funeral)
St Mary’s Church, Twickenham Students from the
Royal Academy of Music
Song to the Virgin Mary (1964, rev.1969) 13’
for chorus a cappella or six solo voices
Text: in Latin (anon)
FP: 26 April 1964 Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Geraint Jones Singers, Geraint Jones
for string sextet version see Chamber works
Universal Prayer (1968-69) 28’
for soprano, contralto, tenor, and bass soloists, chorus, 3 harps,
and organ
Text: Alexander Pope (E)
FP: 24 May 1970 Cathedral of St John the Divine, New York Leopold Stokowski, conductor
“…it conveys in performance a distinct lyricism, the civilised sensibility of an artist who refuses to accept that beauty and intelligence are, in any way mutually contradictory. This is a highly unfashionable point of view. But the history of our society—not least its recent history—seems to indicate that it is right.”
The Listener
Winter Solstice (1972) 21’
for soprano and baritone soloists, mixed chorus, 3 trumpets,
3 trombones, timpani, and glockenspiel
Text: Camilla Jessel (E)
FP: 16 December 1972 Kingston-upon-Thames Parish Church
Jean Knibbs, Bruce Pullan, Louis Halsey Singers,
London Bach Orchestra, Louis Halsey