‘The Imagined Forest’ was Co-commissioned by BBC Radio 3 and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra to mark the 150th anniversary of the Royal Albert Hall, London.
First performed by the RLPO, conducted by Domingo Hindoyan on September 5th 2021 as part of the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall, London.
‘‘The Imagined Forest’ (2021) for orchestra is a fantastical journey through a space that appears to be a familiar impression of nature, but simultaneously somewhere entirely unknown. The forest, a place rooted in fairy tales, fantasy and folklore, often represents areas of refuge, danger, transformation, and adventure. Recognising the forest as an ethereal and intangible entity, the piece seeks to momentarily transport the listener somewhere intimate and yet, surreal.
The piece is inspired by the work of Clare Celeste Börsch, a Berlin-based artist who uses collage techniques to build imagined worlds filled with foliage and fauna. Bringing together thousands of delicate hand cut paper images, she creates intricate and immersive spaces to transform ordinary rooms into magical forests. ©G.E.M.2021
“Grace-Evangeline Mason’s The Imagined Forest was drawn with pen-and-ink precision and filled with vivid orchestral colour...Glittering surfaces gave way to music of greater emotional power as we drew deeper into the forest. The young British composer, 26, is a name to watch.”
10 upcoming 2022/23 performance dates of ‘The Imagined Forest’ have recently been announced, including Italian, German, Finnish, and US premieres by the Philharmonia Orchestra, Magdeburgische Philharmonie, Lahti Sinfonia, and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
5th September - Philharmonia Orchestra /John Axelrod
AUDITORIUM GIOVANNI AGNELLI, Turn, Italy
Italian Premiere
6th September - Philharmonia Orchestra /John Axelrod
TEATRO ALLA SCALA, Milan, Italy
9th November - Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra /Mark Wigglesworth
LIGHTHOUSE, Poole, UK
10th November - Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra /Mark Wigglesworth
EXETER UNIVERSITY GREAT HALL, Exeter, UK
10th November - Lahti Sinfonia /Jonathon Heyward
SIBELIUS HALL, Lahti, Finland
Finnish Premiere
17th November - Magdeburgische Philharmonie /Ilya Ram
THEATER MAGDEBURG, Magdeburg, Germany
German Premiere
18th November - Magdeburgische Philharmonie /Ilya Ram
THEATER MAGDEBURG, Magdeburg, Germany
19th May - Baltimore Symphony Orchestra /Jonathon Heyward
JOSEPH MEYERHOFF SYMPHONY HALL, Baltimore, US
US Premiere
20th May - Baltimore Symphony Orchestra /Jonathon Heyward
MUSIC CENTER AT STRATHMORE, North Bethesda, US
21st May - Baltimore Symphony Orchestra /Jonathon Heyward
JOSEPH MEYERHOFF SYMPHONY HALL, Baltimore, US
