Blessing

The greatest privilege for a musician such as myself is the opportunity to create and record wonderful music with fellow musicians and composers. I first met John one afternoon at a London hotel where we sat down for a cup of tea to discuss the possibility of his writing a work for me. Out of this conversation came the Suite Lyrique, which I performed shortly afterwards. It became obvious that we should record it and so I approached DG with the idea. We were overjoyed that they were keen to get involved. So this CD was born. The music is a collection of some of John’s more popular works, some traditional Welsh folk songs, two wonderful lullabies for my girls, and the Suite Lyrique. As we were discussing and preparing the recording, I had started work on a small concerto for harp and strings. It was the first time I had put pen to paper, as it were, and written some music down properly. I was naturally very excited when it was decided to include this work as well – the Celtic Concerto. There is always a whole army of people who help along the way to make projects like this happen. But, to name just a few … Thanks to John for all his work and musical inspiration; Elin for her sublime singing; Sinfonia Cymru for providing the fabulous young players that made up the strings and woodwind; Geraint and Elinor for their constant support and friendship; Lou Watson – finally the duet we were waiting for; the studio team for their engineering skills and making it all sound beautiful; and my family, who keep me pulsing on! I hope you enjoy it. Catrin Finch