Marianne Beate Kielland – Så kort ein sommar menneska har – Songs by Gisle Kverndokk (2021) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Melody is something I have been passionate about throughout my career as a composer. Crafting a melody that is captivating yet simultaneously original and unpredictable. What, exactly, makes a melody “good”? I’ve been looking into this for years. From studying Palestrina’s strict rules, all the way to studying the American songwriters who created the great “Evergreens” catalogue. Writing for the voice is of great interest to me – especially musical drama. Throughout my years as a composer, I’ve composed songs. Everything from opera arias to simple songs. This album unites several of the genres I’ve worked on. The songs are based on opera, musicals, theatre, folk song programs and poetry evenings. What unites them is my love for poetry. And on this album, you will make the acquaintance of some of the poets I admire the most.

Summer is the main theme you’ll sense here. The bright summer. The light that gives life, but which eventually turns into darkness – the summer that passes into autumn. The cycle of life and nature. Liv Holtskog’s poem «So short is the summer we all have» tells us that everything is perishable. Summer is short. Life is short. But as Ruth Maier writes: “The days get brighter when you’re in love with someone.” Shakespeare writes “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”, while in sonnet 33 he describes how the sun is darkened by clouds when his beloved deceives him. In his poem “Don’t Ask For Love” Wildenvey writes: «After a spring and a summer, autumn crushes it all – heavy and hard and cold.»

I’ve been really looking forward to this album. It is a gift for a composer to have his songs performed by such wonderful artists as Marianne Beate Kielland and Nils Anders Mortensen. I am grateful, proud and happy!

Tracklist:
1. Marianne Beate Kielland – Så kort ein sommar menneska har (05:27)
2. Marianne Beate Kielland – Likevel er du her (02:00)
3. Marianne Beate Kielland – Spør ikke om kjærlighet (01:48)
4. Marianne Beate Kielland – Ruth Maier in Memoriam: I. Impresjonistisk bilde (01:39)
5. Marianne Beate Kielland – Ruth Maier in Memoriam: II. Vårnatt (01:43)
6. Marianne Beate Kielland – Ruth Maier in Memoriam: III. Til en venninne (02:25)
7. Marianne Beate Kielland – Ruth Maier in Memoriam: IV. Dagene blir lysere (02:59)
8. Marianne Beate Kielland – Ruth Maier in Memoriam: V. Tingene kommer meg nærmere nå (03:08)
9. Marianne Beate Kielland – Ruth Maier in Memoriam: VI. Ordene (03:44)
10. Marianne Beate Kielland – Ruth Maier in Memoriam: VII. Ingenting er (01:54)
11. Marianne Beate Kielland – Bare dragen er fri (03:03)
12. Marianne Beate Kielland – Vise (02:21)
13. Marianne Beate Kielland – Song (01:35)
14. Marianne Beate Kielland – Shakespeare Sonnets: Sonnet 18: Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? (02:18)
15. Marianne Beate Kielland – Shakespeare Sonnets: Sonnet 3: Look in thy glass, and tell the face thou viewest (00:54)
16. Marianne Beate Kielland – Shakespeare Sonnets: Sonnet 9: Is it for fear to wet a widow’s eye (02:04)
17. Marianne Beate Kielland – Shakespeare Sonnets: Sonnet 128: How oft, when thou, my music, music play’st (01:23)
18. Marianne Beate Kielland – Shakespeare Sonnets: Sonnet 129: The expense of spirit in a waste of shame (02:05)
19. Marianne Beate Kielland – Shakespeare Sonnets: Sonnet 23: As an unperfect actor on the stage (02:41)
20. Marianne Beate Kielland – Shakespeare Sonnets: Sonnet 33: Full many a glorious morning have I seen (02:20)
21. Marianne Beate Kielland – Shakespeare Sonnets: Sonnet 144: Two loves I have of comfort and despair (02:23)
22. Marianne Beate Kielland – Ave Verum (04:48)