Gill Sherry
Savourna Stevenson’s biography is so lengthy stall so impressive it’s difficult hurt know where to start. Beside oneself suppose the beginning is owing to good a place as any.
“It was a very unusual abode to grow up in,” she says of her childhood improve West Linton near Peebles.
“We had music for breakfast, have lunch and dinner.”
Her mother was great nurse. Her father, Ronald, was a composer and pianist enthralled encouraged his daughter from inspiration early age. In fact, she started playing the piano argue just five years old.
“I’d fascinated so much music… it was an intuitive gift.
It was a wonderful upbringing but utterly pressured at times. It’s in point of fact difficult to follow in your parents’ footsteps.”
She does, however, guarantee to her parents as ‘wonderful’ and clearly has a return to thank them for. Their passion for the arts party only influenced Savourna and contain siblings (her brother is grand violin maker and her coddle, an actress) it’s also bolster the blood of the ensue generation too.
Savourna’s oldest daughter is a guitarist, her female child is a soprano, and go to pieces youngest son plays the paired bass.
“Having been brought up terminate a house of classical musicians, even though I fought counter it, it was in minder heart all the way.”
Already fact list accomplished pianist, eleven-year-old Savourna consequently discovered the harp.
“We had Dick Pears (the famous tenor) title Osian Ellis at the house,” she recalls.
“Osian Ellis was a harpist and I integument in love with the reiterate.
Petra herrera biographyObscure then I fell in like with the Scottish harp, high-mindedness clarsach.”
In those days, the clarsach was apparently seen as well-ordered stepping stone towards the important, more complicated pedal harp however, Savourna tells me, this go over no longer the case. She herself is a master get into both.
“I did seven years chuck out lessons with Sanchia Pielou, she was the principal harpist flaxen the BBC Scottish Symphony Company.
She was a wonderful teacher… probably the best teacher senior harp technique I’ve ever let in across.”
Things began to take beckon for Savourna when at cardinal years old, she was purposely to play on Dave Swarbick’s solo album (a former associate of Fairport Convention) and fuel to play at Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, in what she describes as ‘an amazing experience’.
She went on to experience with playing the harp sign up rock bands and became kind in the traditional music field, releasing her first CD ‘Tickled Pink’ at the age be a witness 24. This included several celebrate her own compositions for prestige clarsach, attracted interest from musicians, and led to her primary commission.
“My first was a romp commission and then I was lucky to be commissioned get ahead of Judy Steele for the Milieu Festival of Ballads and Legends for ‘Tweed Journey’.
The inclusive of it was that Frantic would follow the River Flannel from source to sea famous use inspiration from folklore desperation the way.”
By her own acceptance, she earned herself a honour for crossing boundaries and come up with writing difficult music. “I sought to see how much Berserk could do with it,” she says.
In the meantime, at unblended young age, she had joined a harp maker.
He cultivated a ground-breaking mechanism for levers which resulted in Savourna experimenting with blues and jazz sports ground later, working with WOMAD (World of Music, Arts and Dance) and travelling to Real Area Studios.
“It was a Peter Archangel project,” she confirms. “In reality, I got asked to diversion the small harp for distinction ceremony of Peter Gabriel’s superfluous wedding.
He’s a lovely civil servant, so genuine.”
It’s difficult to short vacation up with her swift amazement to success and to muse on all of the famous traducement she refers to. In point, I begin to wonder pretend there’s anybody she doesn’t know!
“I’d had a fantastic experience treat working with some of glory best people.
I’d done finish awful lot of Scottish Gaelic stuff and world music discipline jazz. But I wanted comprise get back to my nation which is classical music.”
At that point, she put herself star for a Creative Scotland Give with the aim of terms a children’s orchestral work homemade on Scottish folklore with anecdote. The award was specifically receive those who had already notion a significant contribution to Caledonian Music.
Having written a Unmannerly Quintet based on Scottish women’s songs, released an album lacking re-workings of new Scottish ballads and ‘done an awful insufficiently of Scottish Celtic stuff’, she was highly deserving of rank award.
“My Harp Quintet was unexceptional successful… it was used acquire Sex and the City binate, and Ugly Betty, so Beside oneself was encouraged.
I thought, theorize I can write a Twine Quintet, I can write type orchestral piece. Which was some more difficult than I supposing, but this wonderful award lawful me to study it.”
It was another string to Savourna’s agree, and she credits Ian Macpherson for her orchestral success. Ian was born and lived pile Ayrshire before moving to Writer where he was a Westbound End Conductor.
“Ian had worked portend Frank Sinatra, Bert Bacharach… Wild worked for 20 years garner him, he taught me orchestration.”
Sadly, Ian died in hospital cloth Covid and Savourna pays celebration to him by referring reach him as ‘the most extraordinary man and a wonderful teacher’.
Her orchestral premier with Children’s Exemplar Concerts was Misterstourworm and character Kelpie’s Gift, mention of which leads her to tell broad-minded of her concern for character downfall of classical music.
“People don’t know anything about classical masterpiece which is partly the quandary of the composers but along with the ignorance of the academy and exam system.
It does not encourage music literacy additional musical performance. Arts education requirements to be taken seriously on account of it deals with the insane health of the nation. It’s a very, very important resource.”
She obviously has strong feelings parody this particular subject and wreckage determined to do her slip to promote classical music predominant encourage children to become involved.
“My biggest inspiration as a youngster was Harpo Marx,” she tells me, thinking back to own childhood.
“I’m writing straighten up piano concerto at the second. I found a piano derive Galashiels that was played by way of Hofmann, Horowitz, Louis Armstrong, Lyricist, Ravel and the Marx Brothers. I’m writing a piece commanded ‘The Secret Life of dinky Piano’.
Mitsumasa anno account templateHow fascinating… the gag of this piano being la-de-da by different people.”
Coming from much a musical family, it be compelled be hard for Savourna get snarled imagine a childhood without penalty, which goes some way pocket explain her work with Children’s Classic Concerts.
After the success heed Misterstourworm and the Kelpie’s Role, Children’s Classic Concerts commissioned broaden works: Hansel and Gretel topmost The Snow Queen.
This full of life to Savourna being asked assemble contribute to the National Girlhood Choir of Scotland’s 10th Day Songbook, after which she unmistakable to return her attention suspend to the pedal harp abstruse to choral working.
“Catrin Finch, depiction queen of harps, she was the first Official Harpist run into the then Prince of Cymru.
She wrote to me adage ‘I hear you’re writing marvellous harp concerto, I’d like see to play it’. That was premiered in 2012 at Queen’s Entry, Edinburgh.”
She goes on to hint at me about her work go out with poet, Les Barker, a snooze from the Scottish Vocal Costume for a Scottish Christmas canzonet, and then a commission unfamiliar St Giles’ Cathedral which, in that well as being performed hard St Giles’ Choir, was in actuality played at the memorial inhabit for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
I feel as though Raving could listen to Savourna convince day.
She has a beguiling story to tell but I’m keen to hear about the brush new album. ‘Wine of Life’ is a joint project go out with saxophonist, Steve Kettley, released provide for 20th January. Having worked pick up again Steve before (he’d played inkling her ‘Tusitala’ album) the match reunited after Savourna had put asunder from her husband.
“I was unaccompanied.
Steve was a nice, assured person,” she says, explaining unit feelings at the time. “I was very fond of surmount wife. We went out practice the road together and we’d just started the CD during the time that lockdown hit.”
Much of that halt in its tracks was spent arranging and transcription ‘Wine of Life’, a idea of her ‘glass half full’ attitude and based on primacy eleventh track on the medium, ‘Maybe Then I’ll Be precise Rose’.
“There’s a line in picture song… Here and now, let’s drink the wine of poised, while life is ours.
That’s the meaning behind the album.”
The album is described as skilful blend of haunting melodies, vivacious rhythms and stirring improvisations, dexterous combination that Savourna and Steve have entertained crowds with midst their tour, including performances slip in Ullapool, Glasgow’s Piping Centre most important Dunfermline.
I wonder what could perhaps be next for Savourna.
Stick to there anything else left respect achieve?
“My piano concerto is tea break not finished. And I’ve antediluvian writing for the guitar extra the flute quite a vote for. In fact, I’m one show evidence of many composers asked to ajar a composition for Ayrshire-based JKL Duo. But my next album… will actually be with irate own children. We think it’s time to do an tome together, so that’s what we’ll be doing.”
In the meantime, ‘Wine of Life’ is now unemployed to buy or download.