Dominique Le Gendre (1960)
Composer: Works list
Contact details: dolegendre9@gmail.com
Mobile: +44 (0)7718 746 015
Upcoming concerts
Songs Of The Islands: fully orchestrated versions of the 12 songs orchestrated by Debra Lynn and D. Le Gendre for performance 16 May 2021 at the Cordier Auditorium of Manchester University, Indiana U.S.A. Manchester Symphony Orchestra conducted by Debra L.ynn.
Song Cycles, Music-Theatre, Opera, Choral works, Chamber Music, Sound poems, Film and Television recordings.
1. The Powder Monkey, Maritime 1788: 15-minute opera for Mezzo Soprano, High tenor and Tenor and duo of Violin and keyboard. Commissioned by Brolly Productions for the National Maritime Museum. World première at the National Maritime Museum as part of International Slavery Remembrance Day 2017, August 23rd 2017.
2. *Jab Molassie: Music-theatre. Libretto by Caitlyn Kamminga. Commissioned by Calabash Foundation for the Arts, Trinidad and Tobago, November 2012. 60 minutes long. A Trinidadian adaptation of Stravinsky’s “Soldier’s Tale” written for: Narrators Female and Male-Soprano and Baritone; Jab Molassie Female and Male-Mezzo-soprano and Tenor, Starboy-Tenor, and ensemble of clarinet, Tenor Saxophone, Trumpet, Trombone, 2 percussion, Double second steel-pan, Violin and Double Bass. Premiered in Trinidad at The Little Carib Theatre, November 2014
3. *How I wonder…: libretto and music Dominique Le Gendre, 20 minutes. Song cycle for Mezzo-Soprano, Counter-tenor and Tenor, piano, guitar, flute, clarinet, violin, viola and cello. Presented at the Grimeborn Opera Festival 2010, Arcola Theatre London.
4. *The General: words and music Dominique Le Gendre, 4 mins. Opera for Soprano, Baritone, flute and harp. First commissioned by tête-a-tête productions and premiered at tête-a-tête The Opera Festival, London 2010.
5. *The Inventor: libretto and music-Dominique Le Gendre, 4mins. Opera for Mezzo-soprano and Baritone, clarinet and Piano/keyboard. First commissioned by tête-a-tête productions and premiered at tête-a-tête The Opera Festival, London 2009.
6. *The Burial at Thebes: Libretto-Seamus Heaney, I hr.30 mins. Opera. Instrumentation: Flute doubling with Bass flute, Oboe, Bassoon, 2 horns in F, B flat Trumpet, Trombone, Percussion- suspended cymbal (with sticks and mallets), Charleston cymbal with sticks and brushes, snare drum with sticks and brushes, bass drum, tom drum, whip, Timpani (4 drums); Vocal distribution: Antigone-Soprano, Eurydice-Soprano, Ismene-Mezzo Soprano, Haemon-Tenor, Creon-High Baritone, Tiresias-Baritone, Chorus: Soprano, Countertenor, Tenor, Bass-Baritone. First commissioned: Manning Camerata, première London, Globe theatre, October 2008.
7. *Bird of Night: Opera. Libretto and Music Dominique Le Gendre,15 mins. Instrumentation: Flute doubling with Bass flute, Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn in F, Harp, Percussion 1- vibraphone (bowed), Bamboos, Snare drum with sticks and brushes, Djembe, Rainstick, 3 tomtoms (high, medium and low, approx. 5th apart) Maracas, Bass Surdu drum, Cymbals, Thick bamboos held upright and struck on floor, sticks on wooden floor. Percussion 2- suspended cymbal (sometimes bowed), Timps (5 drums), Bamboos, Snare drum (with sticks and brushes) Shekere, Surdu, Marker Tree, Bell tree, 3 tom-toms (high medium and low, approx. a 5th apart), Maracas (wooden and metal tubular) Moroccan Duf, Triangle, Karkabous, Whip, Bamboos (held upright and struck on floor) Djembe, Vibraphone (sometimes bowed) Chimes (bell plates). Strings: Violin(6), viola (4), Cello (4), Bass (3). SATB chorus, Soloists: Soprano, Mezzo Soprano, Tenor and Baritone. First commissioned by Nitro/ROH2. Première at the Linbury Theatre ROH, Covent Garden November 2003.
8. *Bird of Night: full length opera. Libretto-Dominique Le Gendre and Paul Bentley, 2hrs, 30 mins. Instrumentation: Same as above. Vocal distribution: SATB chorus, Apolline- Lyric Soprano, Justine- Lyric soprano, Nen-Nen- Mezzo Soprano, Desirée- Alto or low Mezzo Soprano, Diego-Tenor, ‘Ti-Jo-High Baritone, Narrator 1- Tenor, Narrator 2- Baritone. First Commissioned: Royal Opera House, première, ROH October 2006.
Dance-opera:
The Burial of Miss Lady: Libretto and music Dominique Le Gendre, 45 mins. Instrumentation: 2 Djembes, Bell Plate, Cello, 2 vocalist- Mezzo Soprano and Alto vocal range. First commissioned: Irie Dance co. Première: Purcell Room, South Bank, London 1994.
Chamber Music:
1. *Tales of the Islands suite in 5 movements. 16 mins. Instrumentation: Oboe, B flat clarinet doubling with Alto and Tenor sax, Bassoon, Horn in F doubling with Snare drum, 1st and 2nd violin, viola, cello. First commissioned Royal Opera House; première, Floral Hall, ROH, Covent Garden, April 2005.
2. *Rio Manzanare Dance suite (co-composer Celia Reggiani), 20mins. Instrumentation: 2 cuatros, Classical Guitar, Harp, Piano, Percussion 1: Wooden maracas, Tom drum, Triangle, Tambourine, Percussion 2: Cow-bell, wood-block and Bamboos; Flute doubling with Alto flute, B flat Clarinet, Bass Clarinet; Strings, the minimum forces recommended are: Violin (4), Viola (3), Cello (3) Double bass (2). Commissioned and supported by Arts Council England; premièred and performed by Lontano Orchestra conducted by Odaline de la Martinez, Purcell Room, South Bank London, April 2005.
3. *In a Different Light. Dance suite for Kathakali dancers, 20 mins. Instrumentation: Flute, Cor anglais, Trumpet in C, Trombone, Percussion-Timpani (5 drums), 3 toms tuned at intervals of a 5th, xylophone, vibraphone. Violin 1(8), Violin 2 (6), Viola (4), Cello(2), Double bass(2). SATB amateur chorus. First commissioned, EOB/ Philharmonia Orchestra; première Peepul Centre, Leicester, December 2006.
4. Dreamwinds 1: 6mins.Vibraphone, violin 1, violin 2(2), viola (2), Cello (2), Double bass (2), Mezzo soprano/soprano. First commissioned: Ingrid Pollard for Landfall 2009; première Museum of London, Docklands, February 2009.
5. Dreamwinds 2: for dance and video art installation. Same instrumentation as above. 10 mins. First commissioned by DLR/Modus Operandi, March 2009.
6. *Fragments1: for Clarinet, Trombone, Double Bass, 2 percussion: Percussion1:Vibraphone, Percussion 2: Timpani, cajon, Tom and cymbal. First commissioned by Caitlyn Kamminga for The Ibis Ensemble and premiered at APA, Port of Spain, Trinidad 27.3.2011
7. *Calling, Speaking: For Clarinet, Trombone, French Horn, 2 conch shells, Double Bass, 2 percussion-Vibraphone and cajon. First commissioned by The Ibis Ensemble and premiered at APA, Port of Spain, Trinidad 7.05.2011
8. *Le Génie Humain: 8 mins.16 For string quartet or full string ensemble. First Commissioned by Marlon Daniel for Ensemble Du Monde, New York. Premiered at the Festival of Caribbean Composers, Performing Arts Centre, College of The Bahamas Nassau Bahamas, Saturday February 23 2013.
9. Riff for Strings and Snare: 12 mins. For string quartet and snare drum. New version premiered at Performing Arts Centre, College of the Bahamas, College of the Bahamas, Saturday February 23rd 2013.
10. *Songs and Dances of the Islands Suite no 1 for Clarinet, Piano and Double Bass. 18.51’. Suite in five movements commissioned by Metamorphosis Dance Company, Trinidad. Premiere, Queens Hall Trinidad and Tobago, April 27,28,29,30,2017 and 12,-15 April 2018.
11. *Songs and dances of the Islands Suite no.2 for Piano and Clarinet, 8.12” in three movements commissioned by Luca Ferrini and Joze Kotar. Premiere at the Summartonar Festival 2017, July 7th 2017. & 10 To be recorded on CD in November 2017.
12. *Percussion Trio no.1 : Hang Pan, Marimba, Vibraphone. 8.06’Premiered by Beaten Track Ensemble at Wigmore Hall 14/01/2020
13. *The Little Things that Matter for solo Oboe, 0,35’ Premiere BBC Radio 3; 04/09/2020 performed by Stella McCracken.
14. *Tongoy Triptych for two guitars in three movements. 9 mins. Composed with support from Arts Council England, February 2020.
15. *Le Génie Humain: for orchestra. Instrumentation: Flute, oboe, B flat Clarinet, French Horn in F (2), Trombones (2), Percussion 1: Marimba, Snare drum and timpani; Percussion 2: vibraphone, low-tom and timpani; Minimum strings that are required are: Violin 1 (5), Violin 2 (4), Viola (4), Violincello (3), Double Bass (2). Developed with support from Arts Council England, April 2020.
FANFARES:
1. Birthday Fanfare: 3 mins. Horn (5), B flat trumpet (2), Tenor trombone (2), Bass Trombone (1), Tuba (1), Percussion-Timpani (5 drums), triangle, bass drum and snare. First commissioned: Philharmonia Orchestra, première De Montfort Hall, Leicester, September 2006.
2. Dawn Chorus Fanfare: 3 mins. Flute (2) Oboe (2), B flat Clarinet (2), Bassoon (2), Horn (2), B flat Trumpet (2), Timpani (5 drums). First commissioned, Manning Camerata, première St, Alban’s Cathedral, April 2007.
SONGS:
1. *Agua Donde Vas?: poetry-Federico Garcia Lorca, for Soprano and piano.
2. *Four Arms Two necks: 16th century anon.poem, for Mezzo or Soprano, and Guitar or Piano.
3. *In My Own Home: words D.Le Gendre, lament for Countertenor and Piano.
4. *Song of Orpheus: words-W. Shakespeare for Alto or Countertenor and Lute or Guitar or Piano.
5. *White Egrets III and White Egrets VII: 1st performances: April 27th, 2015 by Tahirah Osborne, Bocas Lit festival Trinidad and Tobago, April 28th 2015, Gdansk Poland, Festival, Natalia Dopwell and Dominika Glapiak pianist and May 2nd 2015, London Hinde Street Methodist Church May 9th 2015.
6. *Songs of the Islands: song collection of 12 songs for Soprano, mezzo-Soprano, Tenor and Baritone commissioned by Natalia Dopwell and Picoplat Music Development Foundation of Trinidad and Tobago: Premiered 9th July 2016 at the Queen’s Hall in Port of Spain Trinidad and Tobago.
CHORAL WORKS
1. *Berwick Sound Estuary: Lyrics by Dominique Le Gendre. Song for SATB choir, Northumbrian pipes, Soprano Saxophone, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone and Bass Clarinet. 6 mins 20 secs. First commissioned and premiered by StrongBack Productions for the Berwick Sound Waite and Sea project October 3rd 2015 at the Holy Trinity Church, Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland, England.
2. *The Great Song of the North: Lyrics by Dominique Le Gendre. A work in Four movements for SATB amateur choirs and Young people’s choir in unison and chamber orchestra of Flute, Oboe, B flat clarinet, Bassoon, Horn in F, Violin I (4), Violin II (3), Violas (3), Celli (2), Doubles bass (2). Commissioned by The Maltings (Berwick) Trust and supported by Northumberland County Council and premiered on September 1st 2018 at The Maltings Theatre and Cinema, Berwick-upon-Tweed.
SOUND POEM
1. Planet Heard: Poem by Vanni Bianconi; music: extracts of Rio Manzanare dance Suite by Dominique Le Gendre and Celia Reggiani and plucked piano and percussion performed by D. Le Gendre. Premiere broadcast: 16th December 2018 from CoseCosmiche Gallery, Milan, Italy.
FILM & Television
Dreams in Transit: Dir. Karen Martinez-Lambert, Riposte Pictures, 2016.
WINNER “CARIBBEAN SPIRIT AWARD” AT THE CARIBBEAN TALES INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL, TORONTO, 2016
http://www.ripostepictures.co.uk/Dreams_In_Transit/people.html
Sixth Happiness: Dir. Waris Hussein, Kennedy Mellor Productions/BFI/BBC Films/Arts Council England 1997
The Body of a Poet: Dir: Sonali Fernando 1995
The Healer: Dir.Mike Hodges / BBC 1. (TVfilm) 1994
I Is a long Memoried Woman: Dir Frances Ann Solomon/Leda Serene Films 1990
In development:
The Playboy of the West Indies: a musical adaptation of Mustapha Matura’s play in collaboration with composer Clement Ishmael with Producer/ Director Nick Kent. (completed and awaiting productions)
Runaway Bay: a musical with book and lyrics by Lakesha Arie-Angelo. (in development)
Orchestrations of Songs of The Islands for performance in May 2021.