Carmen Perpetuum

Carmen Perpetuum (2022)

-for solo oboe

Duration: approx. 23 minutes

Difficulty: Advanced

Download includes full score.

'Carmen Perpetuum' is a 21st century companion work to Benjamin Britten's seminal 1956 work Six Metamorphoses after Ovid and was commissioned, premiered and recorded by Celia Craig. Each movement is approximately 4 minutes duration, and may be performed individually or as a set.

1. Arachne: whose prodigious talent incensed Minerva and made transparent the true nature of the gods, resulting in her shame and transformation.

2. Actaeon: who, steered by a pitiless fate, angered the goddess Diana and must attempt to outrun his own misfortune.

3. Semele: whose foolish and naive desire to see and be seen by her immortal lover brings about her own destruction.

4. Callisto: who is deceived and defiled by Jove, shamed by Diana, and further punished and made mute by Juno, before finally finding solace in the stars.

5. Pygmalion: who refuses to succumb to the allure of any woman, until he is able to procure one of his own making.

6. Daphne: whose strength and beauty provoke unwanted desire in Apollo, forcing her to flee.