This time last year I was frantically writing music for Shakespeare’s Globe 19/20 productions of Henry VI and Richard III. Working long hours with a bunch of inspiring colleagues to create something I was proud to be a part of. It all feels so removed from the world we currently find ourselves in.
This new release is a celebration of what we acheived and has been specially created to support Shakespeare’s Globe at this difficult time, with all proceeds donated to their unique theatres and education facility. #supporttheartsUK
Photo: Sophie Russell (Richard III) and Jonathan Broadbent (Henry VI): (c) Marc Brenner
Dominion of the Sword: Henry VI & Richard III
elliewilson.bandcamp.com
Release date: 6 November 2020 CD I DL + Booklet PDF
This EP features a selection of incidental music along with speeches by some of the Globe Ensemble actors, plus a specially written booklet note by Shakespeare's Globe research assistant Hailey Bachrach.
The music was hailed as ‘impressive … this season’s most memorable’ (Fringe Review) and described as ‘melt[ing] seamlessly into the drama’ (The Guardian) and ‘tonally akin to a Scorsese film’ (What’s On Stage).
Folk songs Adieu to Old England and Dominion of the Sword rub shoulders with 1960s country-rock hit For The Good Times which becomes an ironically haunting theme song for Richard III himself, accompanying his murders as a symbol of his world’s growing desensitisation to violence; and closing number, When the Roses Bloom Again. These are stitched together with cinematic underscoring, creating a doom-laden, unsettling world as the plays become more bloody and horrific.
“By pulling songs from across time we sought to explore how Shakespeare’s vision of a troubled, chaotic England spoke not just to his time or to our own, but could represent the wide and messy history of the whole nation.”
Tracklisting:
1 Henry VI ‘Was ever king that joyed an earthly throne / Woe above woe’
Jonathan Broadbent (Henry VI - Part II, Act IV Scene IX / Part III, Act II Scene V)
2 Dominion of the Sword
3 York ‘Now, York, or never, steel thy fearful thoughts’
Colin Hurley (Henry VI - Part II, Act III Scene I)
4 Henry VI ‘This battle fares like to the morning’s war’
Jonathan Broadbent (Henry VI - Part III, Act II Scene V)
5 Doom Adieu
6 Clifford ‘Here burns my candle out; ay, here it dies’
Nina Bowers (Henry VI - Part III, Act II Scene VI)
7 Adieu to Old England
8 Queen Margaret ‘What, were you snarling all before I came’
Steffan Donnelly (Richard III - Act I Scene III)
9 For the Good Times
10 Richard III ‘Give me another horse! Bind up my wounds!’
Sophie Russell (Richard III - Act V Scene III)
11 When the Roses Bloom Again
Globe Ensemble Actors: Nina Bowers, Jonathan Broadbent, Steffan Donnelly, Colin Hurley, Sophie Russell
The Globe Band (Bastard Feudalism):
Ellie Wilson violin, saw, vocals
Thom Ashworth lead vocals, percussion, guitar, mandolin
Jay Chakravorty piano, harmonium, guitar, EBows
Midori Jaeger cello
All music written/arranged by Ellie Wilson
Music recorded in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, Shakespeare’s Globe, London, December 2019
Speeches recorded in actors’ homes 2020
Edited and mixed by Thom Ashworth
Mastered by David Lefeber
℗ & © 2020 Ellie Wilson
Shakespeare’s Globe is an independent charity that receives no regular government subsidy and generates 95% of its income from theatre tickets and other on-site activities. Due to the 2020 pandemic, it is losing nearly £2 million a month. They need support more than ever to get through this most challenging time.
This release has been specially created to support Shakespeare’s Globe, with all proceeds donated to their unique theatres and education facility. It is available from my Bandcamp page only. elliewilson.bandcamp.com