The Colorado Symphony announces the public release of GRAMMY® Award-winning composer Michael Daugherty’s Harp of Ages on Naxos Records, available internationally on all digital platforms. Composed by Daugherty for the Colorado Symphony’s principal harpist Courtney Hershey Bress, the album was recorded with the Colorado Symphony May 12-14, 2023, at Boettcher Concert Hall, during the piece’s world premiere conducted by Andrew Litton.
Harp of Ages pays homage to the illustrious history and enduring beauty of the harp, an instrument that has enchanted listeners from ancient civilizations to the modern era. Divided into seven movements, the concerto evokes genres and memorable figures associated with the harp, from the poetic lyre of Sappho in classical Greece, to the wild glissandos of Harpo Marx in 1930s Hollywood, and the jazz harp of Dorothy Ashby and Alice Coltrane in 1950s Detroit. Through intricate orchestrations and evocative melodies, Harp of Ages showcases Daugherty’s unique ability to blend tradition with innovation, creating a work that is both timeless and contemporary. Under the brilliant baton of conductor Andrew Litton, the renowned Colorado Symphony is joined by their principal harpist Courtney Hershey Bress, who breathes life into every note with extraordinary sensitivity and virtuosity.
“In this exceptional live recording, harp soloist Courtney Hersey Bress, the Colorado Symphony, and conductor Andrew Litton come together to bring to life the energy, drama, and emotion of my harp concerto Harp of Ages,” said Daugherty. “As a longtime collaborator with the Colorado Symphony, I am thrilled to have had the opportunity to work with these talented musicians and the administration over the last 20 years. Producing this spectacular live recording in 2024 together is a dream come true.”
Harp of Ages was commissioned by the Kenneth and Myra Monfort Charitable Foundation and the Colorado Symphony for Courtney Hershey Bress, principal harpist. The world premiere was given by Courtney Hershey Bress, solo harp, with the Colorado Symphony conducted by Andrew Litton, at Boettcher Concert Hall, Denver Performing Arts Complex on 12 May 2023.
“Harp of Ages speaks to my soul, and I am very honored that Michael Daugherty wrote it for me,” said Bress. “The orchestra sounds fantastic with the excellent guidance from Andrew Litton. I will champion this extraordinary concerto for the rest of my career.”
“It was an incredible joy to be a part of the premiere of this amazing work for harp and orchestra,” said Andrew Litton. “Courtney Hershey Bress rises to the monumental technical and virtuosic challenges of the harp part, and the orchestra was terrifically supportive in its contribution. Harp of the Ages is a piece for the ages!”
The harp is one of the oldest and most beautiful instruments, from early civilizations to the present. Like the seven pedals on the modern harp, my concerto is divided into seven movements that reflect on genres and memorable figures associated with the harp throughout the ages:
1. Sappho Leaps
Sappho (7th century BC): Greek lyric poet who played the lyre and, according to ancient lore, leaped from a cliff to her death.
2. Sister Juana’s Hymn
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz (1648–1695): Mexican nun who became famous as a poet, scholar and composer of music accompanied by harp.
3. Uhura’s Song
Nyota Uhura (c. 23rd century): fictional character from Africa, and communications officer on the USS Enterprise, who sang and played the harp on the original Star Trek television series (1964–67).
4. David’s Prayer
David (c. 1000 BC): young shepherd from the Old Testament who played the harp to soothe the spirits of King Saul.
5. Harpo Speaks
Harpo Marx (1888–1954): mute member of the Marx Brothers comedy team who played the harp in their numerous Hollywood films of the 1930s and 1940s.
6. Detroit Blues
Dorothy Ashby (1932–1986) and Alice Coltrane (1937–2007): innovators of the jazz harp from Detroit, Michigan.
7. Irish Wedding
Since the 13th century, the Irish harp been associated with songs of war, dance, and weddings. As the heraldic symbol of Ireland, the harp has been championed by generations of Irish harpists from Turlough O’ Carolan (1670–1738) to Mary O’Hara (b. 1935).
About Michael Daugherty:
Multiple GRAMMY Award-winning composer Michael Daugherty is one of the most commissioned, performed, and recorded composers on the international concert music scene today. His music is rich with cultural allusions and bears the stamp of classic modernism, with colliding tonalities and blocks of sound; at the same time, his melodies can be eloquent and stirring. Hailed by The Times (London) as “a master icon maker” with a “maverick imagination, fearless structural sense, and meticulous ear,” Daugherty’s unique musical style combines elements of American popular culture, art, literature, and history resulting in a diverse and captivating body of work that is enthusiastically performed by orchestras, wind ensembles and performers around the world. His music, recorded by Naxos over the last two decades, has received six GRAMMY Awards, including Best Contemporary Classical Composition in 2011 for Deus ex Machina for piano and orchestra (8.559635) and in 2017 for Tales of Hemingway for cello and orchestra (8.559798).
Born in 1954 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Daugherty is the son of a dance band drummer and the oldest of five brothers, all professional musicians. As a young man, Daugherty studied composition with many of the preeminent composers of the 20th century including Jacob Druckman, Earle Brown, Bernard Rands and Roger Reynolds at Yale (1980–1982), Pierre Boulez at IRCAM in Paris and Betsy Jolas at the Paris Conservatory (1979), and György Ligeti in Hamburg (1982–1984). Daugherty was also an assistant to jazz arranger Gil Evans in New York from 1980–1982. Since 1991, Daugherty has been professor of composition at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance, where he is a mentor to many of today’s most talented young composers. He is also a frequent guest of professional orchestras, festivals, universities and conservatories around the world.
Daugherty’s music is published by Peermusic Classical/ Faber Music, Boosey & Hawkes, and Michael Daugherty Music.
About Courtney Hershey Bress:
Courtney Hershey Bress joined the Colorado Symphony as principal harp in 2001 after a celebrated freelance career that took her all over the world, including engagements in Asia with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and in the United States with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the United States Army Field Band. She has also been principal harpist of the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music and guest principal harpist with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Bress teaches at the Lamont School of Music (University of Denver), Lamont Summer Academy, and the University of Wyoming, and has been visiting professor of harp at the Eastman School of Music. Bress was a 2005 GRAMMY nominee for her performance of George Crumb’s Ancient Voices of Children and her album Night Music and Fantasies, a collaboration with violinist Andrés Cárdenes, was released in December 2022 to great acclaim. Bress studied at the Eastman School of Music and the Chicago College of Performing Arts (Roosevelt University). The author of For Love of the Harp (Veritas Musica Publishing), she owns and performs on a rare Lyon & Healy Style 3 gold harp.
About Andrew Litton:
Andrew Litton, music director of the New York City Ballet since 2015, is also the former principal guest conductor of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, conductor laureate of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, and music director laureate of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra. Honours include the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit, Yale’s Sanford Medal, the Elgar Society Medal, and an honorary doctorate from Bournemouth University. Litton was principal conductor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra from 1988 to 1994 and music director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra from 1994 to 2006. His discography boasts over 135 recordings. An avid opera conductor with a keen theatrical sense, Litton has led major opera companies such as The Metropolitan Opera, The Royal Opera, Covent Garden, Opera Australia and Deutsche Oper Berlin. In Norway, he was key to founding the Bergen National Opera, where he led numerous acclaimed performances. An accomplished pianist, Litton performs as a soloist, conducting from the keyboard. He is also an acknowledged expert on and performer of Gershwin’s music and serves as advisor to the University of Michigan Gershwin Initiative.
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Recordings of Harp of Ages are available for direct digital download through iTunes, Amazon, and Spotify. For more information visit coloradosymphony.org.