Prima Facie Records

Chlore Sonata (PFV002)

Sonata for solo piano – composed by Michael Henry and performed by Simon Conning

This recording is the second in the Prima Facie 'Vignette' series of download / streaming-only releases by contemporary composers. It features an early composition for solo piano by the British composer Michael Henry.

Available on Spotify | Apple Music | Amazon Music | YouTube

Image '189' by Steve Plews

About this vignette

"The piece began life during my college years in the early 1980's as a single movement experiment in double bitonality, with all the notes of the left hand coming from the triads of F#minor and Bb major, whilst the right hand covered Ab major and E minor (though subsequent revisits to this piece may have broken those initial rules here and there). Fast forward about a decade and a second movement was added, developed from personal improvisations inspired by the music of Ravel, Prokofiev and Keith Jarrett. A short binding movement was then added to connect the two. At this stage (now the late 90's), elements of the piece were showcased as part of a recital by flautist Rowland Sutherland and pianist Tony Grey which took place in the Clore Room in London's Tate Gallery, thus giving rise to the piece's name, with the additional 'h' having been included at some point subsequently.

Some years later, I had the very good fortune to reconnect with Simon Conning. He and I were contemporaries at the Royal College of Music and he remembered and enquired about the original study I had written in those early years. By this time I had adapted the piece into what I see as the final and definitive version which Simon premieres so expressively here. The Chlore Sonata score is available online via Score Exchange."
Michael Henry, April 2024

Pianist Simon Conning adds his commentary on how he came to record Chlore Sonata:

Credits

Recorded at St Elizabeth’s Church, Ashley, Cheshire in February 2024, using a Bösendorfer piano.
Pianist: Simon Conning
Engineer: Steve Plews
Producer: Steve Plews

Michael Henry is a composer, vocalist and BBTA award nominated musical director who studied clarinet and composition at the Royal College of Music, 1981-85. He has undertaken the dual role of composer and musical director on numerous projects including A Midsummer Night's Dream (Chichester Festival Theatre 2023), As You Like It (Shakespeare's Globe 2023), The Caucasian Chalk Circle (Rose Theatre, Kingston 2022); The Long Song (Chichester Festival Theatre 2021); Mr. Burns and They Drink It In The Congo (Almeida Theatre 2015-16); Boi Boi Is Dead (Leeds Playhouse, Watford Palace Theatre, Tiata Fahodzi 2015); Barber Shop Chronicles (National Theatre 2017-19); The Bloomsbury Songbook (Bloomsbury Festival 2017 & 18) and the online theatrical anthology On Hostile Ground (hosted by the Royal & Derngate Theatre 2021). He has also been a vocalist, composer and MD with a cappella groups Flying Pickets and The Shout. Other compositions include the opera Circus Tricks (for Tête A Tête's 2012 season), Rocket Symphony (a piece for 500 voices and fireworks, co-composed with Orlando Gough, for the European Capital of Culture, Linz 2009) Stand for 16 voices (BBC Proms 2006) and the internationally popular series of clarinet quartets Birdwatching. Composition awards include the Stanford, Horowitz and Cornelius Cardew prizes. He has acted as musical director / performer in numerous productions including The Amen Corner, Emperor and Galilean and Death and the King’s Horseman (National Theatre); FEAST (Young Vic); May Contain Food (Protein Dance Company) and The Pet Shop Boys' debut international tour in 1989. In the field of educational and youth projects, Michael has provided contributions as animateur, composer, arranger and conductor to various organisations including LAMDA, Arts Ed, Rose Bruford, Talawa, Music For Youth and Wigmore Hall's outreach project “Singing With Friends”.

Simon Conning began his studies with Marjorie Kelly in Macclesfield, then continued at the Royal Northern College of Music’s Junior Department in Manchester with Marjorie Clementi. He went on to study at the Royal College of Music in London with Yu Chun-Yee. Simon is working on a number of recording projects with the Prima Facie Records label.