Gavin Friday » ian wilson

‘Handsomest Drowned Man’ in Paris

Caroline — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 19:06:04 +0000

The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World, Ian Wilson’s work for narrator, clarinet, piano, violin and cello, based on a text by Gabriel García Márquez, which was first performed in Dublin (2007) and Brighton (2008) will see its European premiere at the Irish Cultural Centre in Paris on December 9.
Narrator Gavin Friday will reprise his role alongside pianist Finghin Collins, clarinettist Carol McGonnell and will be joined by Catherine Leonard on violin and Richard Harwood on cello.

Admission is free
9 December 08 – 19h30
For more information, check the Centre Culturel Irlandais website.

Messiaen Anniversary Concert reviews

Caroline — Thu, 22 May 2008 08:50:33 +0000

The Times reviews The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World:

“The night before, more mysticism at a Messiaen Anniversary Concert. The French composer was honoured in a performance of his Quatuor pour la fin du temps, played with robust commitment by Finghin Collins (piano), Elizabeth Cooney (violin), Richard Harwood (cello) and Carol McGonnell (clarinet). And for those players, the Belfast-born composer Ian Wilson had written a “setting” of the Gabriel Garcia Márquez short story, The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World.
With Gavin Friday as narrator, it received its UK premiere in a packed Corn Exchange: sand-ripples of meandering lines and sea-sprays of song and tremolo, in a cunning score that never upstaged, but was as impassioned as the words themselves.”

Elsewhere, Gavin Burrows says on his blog: ‘Friday read ebulliently.’

Reminder: Brighton Festival

Caroline — Fri, 16 May 2008 11:05:49 +0000

Gavin Friday will be in Brighton, England on Monday 19th, to narrate Ian Wilson’s The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World at the Brighton Festival.
He will be joined by a new ensemble featuring three highly talented young Irish artists and the cellist of the Belcea Quartet. The piece was originally commissioned by the IIB Bank Music in Great Irish Houses Festival with support from the Arts Council of Ireland.
Wilson’s The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World will be performed alongside Olivier Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time. Together they form the Messiaen Anniversary Concert to mark the centenary of his birth.

Buy tickets from the Festival website

‘Handsomest Drowned man’ at Brighton Festival

Caroline — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 13:04:40 +0000

Gavin Friday will narrate Ian Wilson’s The Handsomest Drowned man in the World at the Brighton Festival (UK) as part of the Messiaen Anniversary Concert on May 19th

Originally commissioned by the Music in Great Irish Houses Festival with funds provided by the Arts Council, The Handsomest Drowned man in the World is based on Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s short story of the same name. It premiered on October 4, 2007 at the National Gallery of Ireland.
Tickets are available at £18 from the Festival Website.

The Handsomest Drowned Man in The World

Caroline — Mon, 17 Sep 2007 00:19:50 +0000

Composed by Belfast-born Ian Wilson, ‘The Handsomest Drowned Man In The World’ features Gavin Friday, narrator collaborating with musicians Carol McGonnell, clarinet; Catherine Leonard, violin; Guy Johnston, cello and Finghin Collins, piano.
The world première of Wilson’s composition will be staged at the National Gallery of Ireland on October 4th, 2007, 6.30 pm.
Based on Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s short story of the same name, the Winter Festival’s first Arts Council funded commission, marks the 80th birthday of this Nobel prizewinning Colombian author.
Tickets (€20) are available from Tickets Ireland. (Telephone: 1890 305 305/053 913 0503, email: info@ticketsireland.ie)