Patricia Lopes: Lily of the Valley for flute and string quartet

⭐ Patricia Lopes: Lily of the Valley for flute and string quartet (2023) ⭐ World Premiere by the LunART Chamber Music Collective on September 30, 2023. Performers: Iva Ugrcic, flute Isabella Lippi and Dawn Wohn, violins Marie Pauls, viola Lindsey Crabb, cello Program Notes: "I composed the musical piece, Lily of the Valley “Lírio do Vale”, for flute and string quartet specially for the concert Voices Unbound to be performed by LunART Chamber Music Collective. When I was searching for my first musical ideas, I was thinking of something that could reflect my necessity for understanding the complexity of the feminine soul, its many faces, its motivations and mission, all issues that I am for a long time concerned with and that I wish to bring to light. My latest project, called Flower Cycle, has led me to immerse in the delicate and profound, vibrant, intense, strong, resistant and highly complex and elaborated flower universe, also a desire long repressed by myself and belittled by the male-dominant thinking of the musical environment in which I grew up as a young musician in the 80’s, in my home country. My previous project lately, is a song cycle inspired by Fernando Pessoa’s writings that I understood brought light to the feminine universe and gave voice to his feminine self - my highly personal point of view. This song cycle is called The feminine in Pessoa “O feminino em Pessoa”. So, when I started writing this piece for flute and string quartet - Lily of the Valley - I knew Iva was going to be the flutist and the soloist to premiere it, so I had the honor to write this original piece specially for her and for this occasion. It is really a privilege to know the musician and musicians that are going to perform your work! It is a privilege to write to the performer herself! I started listening to Iva playing from the last concert, that was recorded of the Flower Cycle, to see what had specially sounded well in her performance, the range and expression of her flute playing to try to prioritize and emphasize in my writing. And it is incredible that ALL of the parts, including the less comfortable for flute, sounded incredibly well and natural and fluent in Iva’s playing! When I learned this I felt free to create the melodies I wished to with hardly any restraints. And then, the next step was to look up for flowers to name the piece that matched the feeling and character that I wanted to emphasize, such as happiness and tenderness. And I looked up some beautiful flowers and the one that I most liked was Lily of the Valley that symbolizes all these characteristics but is mostly associated with maternity! And who has just become a mother and has an adorable and cute little baby girl? Iva!!! And what a great coincidence! Lily is the name of her wonderful baby girl! So I was inspired by the adorable baby Lily, the beautiful flower Lily of the Valley and by the fantastic and magical sound of Iva’s flute!" Patricia Lopes (Brazil), 2023 #lunartfestival #lunartchambercollective #womencomposers