Path to the Moon Laura van der Heijden & Jâms Coleman

• Erich Korngold (1897 - 1957): Schönste Nacht, Op. 36 No. 25:
• 1 Korngold: Schönste Nacht, Op. 36 No. 25 03:53
• George Walker (1922 - 2018): Cello Sonata:
• 2 Walker: Cello Sonata: I. Allegro passionato - Molto meno mosso 08:18
• 3 Walker: Cello Sonata: II. Sostenuto 05:43
• 4 Walker: Cello Sonata: III. Allegro - Presto 03:28
• Lili Boulanger (1893 - 1918): Reflets:
• 5 Boulanger: Reflets 02:47
• Florence Price (1887 - 1953): Night (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Tom Poster):
• 6 Price: Night (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Tom Poster) 01:52
• Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976): Sonetto XXX:
• 7 Britten: Sonetto XXX 04:03
• Sonata, Op. 65:
• 8 Britten: Sonata, Op. 65 (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Mstislav Rostropovitch): I. Dialogo 07:06
• 9 Britten: Sonata, Op. 65 (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Mstislav Rostropovitch): II. Scherzo-pizzicato 02:40
• 10 Britten: Sonata, Op. 65 (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Mstislav Rostropovitch): III. Elegia 06:02
• 11 Britten: Sonata, Op. 65 (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Mstislav Rostropovitch): IV. Marcia 02:19
• 12 Britten: Sonata, Op. 65 (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Mstislav Rostropovitch): V. Moto Perpetuo 02:41
• Claude Debussy (1862 - 1918): Beau soir, L. 6 (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Alexander Grechaninov):
• 13 Debussy: Beau soir, L. 6 (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Alexander Grechaninov) 02:28
• Gabriel Fauré (1845 - 1924): 2 Mélodies, Op. 46::
• 14 Fauré: 2 Mélodies, Op. 46: II. Clair de lune 03:02
• Claude Debussy: Cello Sonata, L. 135:
• 15 Debussy: Cello Sonata, L. 135: I. Prologue 04:24
• 16 Debussy: Cello Sonata, L. 135: II. [Sérénade.] Modérément animé 03:21
• 17 Debussy: Cello Sonata, L. 135: III. Finale. Animé 03:43
• Toru Takemitsu (1930 - 1996): Will Tomorrow, I Wonder, Be Cloudy or Clear?:
• 18 Takemitsu: Will Tomorrow, I Wonder, Be Cloudy or Clear? 02:27
• Jonathan King (b. 1944), Nina Simone (1933 - 2003): Everyone's Gone to the Moon (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Jâms Coleman):
• 19 King, Simone: Everyone's Gone to the Moon (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Jâms Coleman) 02:49
• Claude Debussy: Suite Bergamasque, L. 75:
• 20 Debussy: Suite Bergamasque, L. 75: III. Clair de lune (Arr. for Cello & Piano by Ferdinando Ronchini & Alexandre Roelens) 05:12
• Total Runtime 01:18:18

Info for Path to the Moon

The performers write: ‘Selecting the repertoire for our album Path to the Moon, we wanted to explore a number of possibilities for binding together a programme. To place different works alongside one another is a wonderful way of bringing out new and unusual qualities in each piece. William T. Horton’s fantastic image The Path to the Moon immediately inspired a flurry of ideas, including works on the subjects of both night and the moon, as well as pieces which invoke the exploratory nature of humankind’s voyage to the moon. Britten wrote his Sonata for Cello and Piano only two years after the first object made by humans had touched the surface of the moon, in 1959. Humans throughout history and from all cultures have been drawn to and taken inspiration from the moon and we have tried to reflect this in our eclectic choice of song repertoire: from Tōru Takemitsu to Nina Simone and from Lili Boulanger to Florence Price. As we hope you will hear on this album, Walker’s Cello Sonata rings with echoes of the sound-worlds of blues and jazz and is infused with a beautiful lyricism. We really believe that Walker’s Cello Sonata deserves to become a staple of the chamber music repertoire and are absolutely thrilled to offer you a recording of it in the context of our own exploration of a path to the moon.’

Laura van der Heijden, cello
Jams Coleman, piano

Laura van der Heijden
has already made a name for herself as a very special emerging talent, captivating audiences and critics alike with the sensitivity of her sound and interpretations. This soulful and evocative artist can already look back on a number of exceptional achievements, among them being the winner – at the age of just 15 - of the BBC Young Musician competition.

Her 2018 debut album “1948”, featuring Russian music for cello and piano with pianist Petr Limonov, won the 2018 Edison Klassiek Award (broadcast live on Dutch television), and the 2019 BBC Music Magazine Newcomer Award. The CD has been hailed as a “dazzling, imaginative and impressive” debut recording.

In 2019, Laura graduated from Cambridge University, and is currently in the middle of a busy 2019/20 season, which sees her perform with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in Aldeburgh, the Tchaikovsky Symphony in Moscow, the Prague Symphony in the UK, the London Philharmonic and BBC Philharmonic Orchestras in the UK, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic in the US.

Other highlights include performing the Saint-Saëns Concerto in the opening concert of the inaugural BBC Proms Australia with Sir Andrew Davis and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra; recitals at Wigmore Hall, Tonhalle Zürich, and Musashino Cultural Foundation in Japan; as well as her participation in the music festivals of West Cork, OCM Prussia Cove, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Krzyzowa Music.

Collaborative music-making is immensely important to Laura, and she regularly participates in international chamber music courses and festivals. She is a member of the Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective, frequently performs with the Brodsky Quartet, and her chamber music partners have included Nicholas Daniel, Krzysztof Chorzelski, Radovan Vlatkovic, Midori, Nils Moenkemeyer, Mark Simpson, Amy Harman, Matthew McDonald, and Fazil Say. In her duo recitals, Laura collaborates with pianists Tom Poster, Jâms Coleman, Petr Limonov, Katya Apekisheva, Finghin Collins, and Huw Watkins.

Laura was born in England to Dutch-Swiss parents and gave her first public performance at the age of 9. Since 2008 she has been a student of the renowned British-Russian cellist Leonid Gorokhov, and participates regularly in masterclasses with David Geringas, Ralph Kirshbaum and Miklós Perényi. In 2016 Laura was chosen by the Orpheum Stiftung in Switzerland, a foundation encouraging and assisting exceptionally talented young instrumental soloists. She is an Ambassador for both the Prince’s Foundation for Children & the Arts and Brighton Youth Orchestra.

Laura plays a late 17th-century cello by Francesco Ruggieri of Cremona, on loan from a Charitable Trust.

Booklet for Path to the Moon