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Ivan Moody is a
composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...
born in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, England, in 1964. He studied composition with at
London University The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree- ...
,
York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...
and privately with
John Tavener Sir John Kenneth Tavener (28 January 1944 – 12 November 2013) was an English composer, known for his extensive output of choral religious works. Among his best known works are '' The Lamb'' (1982), '' The Protecting Veil'' (1988), and ''Song ...
. He also studied
Eastern Orthodox theology Eastern Orthodox theology is the theology particular to the Eastern Orthodox Church. It is characterized by monotheistic Trinitarianism, belief in the Incarnation of the essentially divine Logos or only-begotten Son of God, a balancing of ca ...
at the
University of Joensuu The University of Eastern Finland ( fi, Itä-Suomen yliopisto) is a university in Finland founded in 2010 with campuses in Joensuu and Kuopio. History The Finnish Parliament passed the Universities Act on June 16, 2009, which, among other things ...
in Finland. Moody is active as a conductor, having directed ensembles such as Voces Angelicae, the Kastalsky Chamber Choir (United Kingdom), Capilla Peña Florida (Spain),
Cappella Romana Cappella Romana is a vocal ensemble founded in 1991 in Portland, Oregon. Its name, meaning "Roman Chapel", refers to the medieval Greek concept of the Roman oikoumene (inhabited world), which embraced Rome and Western Europe, as well as the Byzanti ...
(United States), the Choir of the Cathedral of St George, Novi Sad, (Serbia) the KotorArt Festival Choir (Montenegro), the Orthodox Choir of the University of Joensuu (Finland) and Ensemble Alpha (Portugal); and as a widely published
musicologist Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...
. His research interests include the music of Eastern Europe, especially 20th century and contemporary music from Russia and the Balkans, the music of the Orthodox Church in the modern era, music and spirituality, music as theology, Serbian church music, the aesthetics of
Modernism Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...
and
Postmodernism Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or Rhetorical modes, mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by philosophical skepticism, skepticis ...
and their intersection with Orthodox church music and the musical culture of the Mediterranean.


Work from the 1980s and 1990s

Moody's compositions show the influences of Eastern liturgical chant and the
Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...
, of which he is a member (he is a protopresbyter of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...
)). His ''Canticum Canticorum I'', written for the
Hilliard Ensemble The Hilliard Ensemble was a British male vocal quartet originally devoted to the performance of early music. The group was named after the Elizabethan miniaturist painter Nicholas Hilliard. Founded in 1974, the group disbanded in 2014. Although ...
and premiered in 1987, achieved enormous success and remains his most frequently-performed work, and in 1990 he won the Arts for the Earth Festival Prize for ''Prayer for the Forests'', subsequently premièred by the renowned Tapiola Choir of Finland. One of his most important works is the oratorio ''Passion and Resurrection'' (1992), based on Orthodox liturgical texts, premièred in 1993 by Red Byrd and the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir under
Tõnu Kaljuste Tõnu Kaljuste (born August 28, 1953) is an Estonian conductor. Born in Tallinn, Kaljuste is the son of Heino Kaljuste (1925–1989), an Estonian choral conductor, and Lia Kaljuste, a radio journalist. Tõnu sang in his father's choirs as a chil ...
at the Tampere Festival. In 1996 it was given its North American premiere by Cappella Romana. ''The Akáthistos Hymn'' (1998), the composer’s largest work to date, and the first complete musical setting of this text, was written for
Cappella Romana Cappella Romana is a vocal ensemble founded in 1991 in Portland, Oregon. Its name, meaning "Roman Chapel", refers to the medieval Greek concept of the Roman oikoumene (inhabited world), which embraced Rome and Western Europe, as well as the Byzanti ...
following these performances. Other significant works include the ‘cello concerto ''Epitaphios'' (1993), the
cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of ...
''Revelation'' (1995), ''Endechas y Canciones'' (1996), the recorder concerto ''Pnevma'' (1998), ''Lamentations of the Myrrhbearer'' (2001) for string quartet, ''Lumière sans déclin'' (2000) for string orchestra, and the choral triptych written for Trio Mediaeval - ''Words of the Angel'' (1998), ''
Troparion A troparion (Greek , plural: , ; Georgian: , ; Church Slavonic: , ) in Byzantine music and in the religious music of Eastern Orthodox Christianity is a short hymn of one stanza, or organised in more complex forms as series of stanzas. The wi ...
of
Kassia Kassia, Cassia or Kassiani ( gr, Κασσιανή, Kassianí, ; – before 865) was a Byzantine-Greek composer, hymnographer and poet. She holds a unique place in Byzantine music as the only known woman whose music appears in the Byzantine litu ...
ni'' (1999), ''A Lion’s Sleep'' (2002), and ''Chalice of Wisdom'', using a text from
Matins Matins (also Mattins) is a canonical hour in Christian liturgy, originally sung during the darkness of early morning. The earliest use of the term was in reference to the canonical hour, also called the vigil, which was originally celebrated by ...
of the Feast of St Thomas, written in 2002 for the
ensemble amarcord amarcord is a German male classical vocal ensemble based in Leipzig, founded in 1992 by five former members of the Thomanerchor. They primarily perform Medieval music, Renaissance music as well as collaborating with contemporary composers. Unt ...
.


Work from the 2000s

Later compositions include a large-scale
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
commission, ''The
Dormition The Dormition of the Mother of God is a Great Feast of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic Churches (except the East Syriac churches). It celebrates the "falling asleep" (death) of Mary the ''Theotokos'' ("Mother of ...
of the Virgin'' (2003), concertos for double-bass (''The Morning Star'', 2003), piano (''Linnunlaulu'', 2003) and bassoon (''Arise'', 2004), ''Passione Popolare'', built on popular religious texts from Magna Graecia and premièred at the Antidogma Festival in Italy in June 2005, and ''Ossetian Requiem'', written for the Amsterdam-based ‘Cello Octet Conjunto Ibérico. In 2008, he completed a new work for the King's Singers, "Canti della Rosa" and a large-scale setting of the Stabat Mater, incorporating texts from the Byzantine liturgy and by Anna Akhmatova, for the Oslo International Festival of Church Music. His 2009 ''Hymn to St Nicholas'' for eight voices was commissioned for the KotorArt Festival in Montenegro, where it was premiered under the composer's direction, and received its American premiere in November of that year. Works completed in 2010 include ''Canticum Canticorum IV'', a commission from Seattle Pro Musica, ''Angelus Domini descendit'', a commission from the Choir of Royal Holloway, University of London and ''Sub tuum praesidium'', a commission from the English Chamber Choir. 2011 saw the completion of a sequence of music for Byzantine-rite vespers for the Children's Choir of
St Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary (SVOTS) is an Eastern Orthodox seminary in Yonkers, New York. It is chartered under the State University of New York and accredited by the Association of Theological Schools. It is a pan-Eastern Ort ...
in New York and Ode 8 of the Paschal Canon, part of a multi-composer work commissioned by Cappella Romana. Recently completed works include "Simeron", for the Goeyvaerts Trio, recorded on Challenge CC72616), "Keskiyö" for two harpsichords, "Shoreline" for two pianos, "Dragonfly", a bass clarinet concerto for Luís Gomes and the Grupo de Música Contemporânea de Lisboa, "Fioriture" for American pianist Paul Barnes (recorded on Orange Mountain OMM0107), "Qohelet" for the Italian ensemble De Labyrinto, the "Dante Trilogy" for choir and ensemble, and "O Isplendor", in memory of
John Tavener Sir John Kenneth Tavener (28 January 1944 – 12 November 2013) was an English composer, known for his extensive output of choral religious works. Among his best known works are '' The Lamb'' (1982), '' The Protecting Veil'' (1988), and ''Song ...
, for Cappella Nova, recorded on Linn Records CKD 539. In October 2014 he was in residence at
Biola University Biola University () is a private, nondenominational, evangelical Christian university in La Mirada, California. It was founded in 1908 as the Bible Institute of Los Angeles. It has over 150 programs of study in nine schools offering bachelor's, ...
in Southern California, where he gave a series of masterclasses and lectures. The concluding monographic concert ended with the world premiere of "Cielo della Luna", the third part of the "Dante Trilogy", commissioned by the Biola Conservatory of Music. The first part of the Trilogy, "O Luce Etterna", was a commission from the Alcobaça Festival for the Capela Musical Cupertino de Miranda, and the second, "Oltre la Spera", was written for the Grupo de Música Contemporânea de Lisboa and the Grupo Musical Olisipo and first performed, as was the bass clarinet concerto "Dragonfly", at the composer's 50th Birthday concert at the Palácio Foz in Lisbon on 27 June 2014. In 2016 was Composer in Residence at the Stimmwercktage in Adlersberg, Germany.


Recent work (2016-present)

Recent works include "Los Espejos de Velázquez" for the pianist
Artur Pizarro Artur Pizarro (born Lisbon, 1968) is an internationally-acclaimed Portuguese concert pianist.Kennedy, Michael and Joyce Bourne. "Pizarro, Artur" ''The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music''. Oxford University Press: 1996. Designated with the presti ...
(premiered in Vila Nova de Gaia in July 2016), "Paris, 7 am" (soprano and piano quintet) for soprano
Suzie LeBlanc Suzie LeBlanc (born 27 October 1961) is a Canadian soprano and early music specialist. She is also active as a professor, currently working at Mcgill University. She was named a member of the Order of Canada in 2014 for her contributions to musi ...
(premiered by Suzie LeBlanc and the Blue Engine, Robert Korgaard and the Blue Engine Quartet, Toronto, December 2016), "Le Vergine" for
Stimmwerck Stimmwerck is a male classical music vocal quartet ensemble specializing in the rediscovery and reproduction of the music of little known renaissance composers of the German-speaking world. History Stimmwerck was founded in Munich, Germany in 2001 ...
(premiered at the Stimmwercktage, Adlersberg, June 2016), "Vespers Sequence" for
New York Polyphony New York Polyphony is a male classical vocal quartet based in New York City. Music of the Renaissance and Medieval music periods constitutes the core of the ensemble’s repertoire, but increasingly, new music occupies an important place both i ...
, premiered at St Mary the Virgin, New York, January 2017), "Psalm Antiphon", using the same scoring as Stravinsky's "Symphony of Psalms", commissioned by the Chamber Choir of Lisbon University and premiered on 13 July 2017 in Lisbon, "Psalm 1" and "Antiphon for Psalm 1", commissioned for Singer Pur and the Regensburger Domspatz and "Amorphous Metal" for the Trio Entremadeiras, premiered in Guarda, 9 February 2018. Works completed between 2018 and 2020 include "Isangele" for the English Chamber Choir, premiered at the Patmos Festival in August 2018, three motets on texts from the Codex Las Huelgas and the Byzantine rite for Trio Mediaeval, premiered in Oslo in October 2018, "Taninim" for tuba and piano, premiered by Sofia Moody and Pedro Vieira de Almeida at the Gravissimo Festival in Alcobaça in August 2019, the large-scale oratorio "Stephans-Weihnacht", commissioned by Singer Pur and St Stephen's Church, Therwil (premiered in December 2019), "Transfiguration", premiered by Voces8 and Intrada in Moscow in January 2020, and "Piano Book", comprising seventeen pieces for different pianists (2020), and "Bird in Space" (2020) for the saxophonist Amy Dickson.


Academic profile

As of 1990, he has lived near
Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...
,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
, where he was until 1998 Professor of Composition at the Academia de Artes e Tecnologias, Lisbon. He has been involved in the construction of a database for the Portuguese Contemporary Music Centre

, was a Research Fellow of the CESEM research unit at the Universidade Nova in Lisbon 2010–2012

and again from 2015, and was Professor of Church Music of the Department of Orthodox Theology at the
University of Eastern Finland The University of Eastern Finland ( fi, Itä-Suomen yliopisto) is a university in Finland founded in 2010 with campuses in Joensuu and Kuopio. History The Finnish Parliament passed the Universities Act on June 16, 2009, which, among other things ...


from 2013-2014. In 2005 he was elected the first Chairman of the International Society for Orthodox Church Music
ISOCM
. His book "Modernism and Orthodox Spirituality in Contemporary Music" was published in 2014 by ISOCM/SASA

. Ivan Moody’s music is recorded on the Hyperion, ECM, Sony, Challenge, Telarc, Gothic, Oehms, Orange Mountain, Linn and Cappella Romana labels.


Partial list of works

* 1982: "Three Poems of Anna Akhmatova", for soprano or tenor and string sextet * 1985: ''Canticum Canticorum I'', for vocal ensemble * 1987: "Canticle of the Mother of God", for choir * 1988: "Hymn of the Transfiguration", for choir * 1988 "Miserere", for choir * 1990: ''Prayer for the Forests'', for choir * 1992: ''Passion and Resurrection'', oratorio, for soloists, choir and ensemble * 1992: ''Vigil of the Angels'' for viola and string orchestra * 1993: ''Epitaphios'', concerto for cello * 1995: ''Revelation'', cantata, for choir and ensemble * 1996: ''Endechas y Canciones'', for vocal ensemble * 1996: ''Klama'' for viola and double bass * 1998: ''The Akathistos Hymn'', for choir * 1998: ''Pnevma'', concerto for recorder * 1998: ''Words of the Angel'', for choir * 1999: ''Troparion of Kassiani'', for choir * 2000: ''Lumière sans déclin'', for string orchestra * 2001: ''Lamentations of the Myrrhbearers'', for string quartet * 2002: ''A Lion's Sleep'', for choir * 2002: ''Chalice of Wisdom'' for choir * 2003: ''The Dormition of the Virgin'', cantata for soloists, choir and ensemble * 2003: ''The Morning Star'', concerto for double-bass * 2003: ''Linnunlaulu'', concerto for piano * 2004: ''Arise'', concerto for bassoon * 2005: ''Passione Popolare'', for soloists, choir and ensemble * 2009: ''Hymn to Saint Nicholas'', for choir * 2010: "Canticum Canticorum IV", for choir * 2010: "Sub tuum praesidium", for choir * 2011: "Vespers", for upper voices * 2012: "The Paschal Canon: Ode VIII", for choir * 2012: "Te lucis ante terminum", for choir * 2012: "Noć Prekrasna", for choir * 2012: "Simeron", for vocal trio and string trio * 2012: "Shoreline", for two pianos * 2013: "Keskiyö", for two harpsichords * 2013: "Dragonfly", for solo bass clarinet and ensemble * 2013: "Fioriture", for solo piano * 2014: "Liturgy of St John Chrysostom no. 2 (Greek Liturgy)", for choir * 2014: "O Luce Etterna (Dante Trilogy Part I)" * 2014: "Oltre la Spera (Dante Trilogy Part II)" * 2014: "Cielo della Luna (Dante Trilogy Part III)" * 2015: "The Descent of the Dove", for violin, cello and piano * 2015: "Uspomena" for two tubas and piano * 2015: "...grace upon her heart..." for choir * 2015: "Los Espejos de Velázquez" for piano * 2016: "Paris, 7 a.m." for soprano and piano quartet * 2016: "Albor" for harpsichord and recorder quartet * 2016: "Le Vergine" for vocal consort and viol consort * 2016: "Vespers Sequence" for vocal ensemble * 2016: "Iterazioni", concerto for marimba * 2017: "Psalm Antiphon" for choir and orchestra * 2017: "Psalm 1" for choir * 2017: "Antiphon for Psalm 1" for choir * 2017: "Perchoresis" for flute trio * 2017: "Amorphous Metal" for wind trio * 2017: "Exaposteilarion for Theophany" for choir * 2018: "Isangele (John on Patmos)" for choir * 2018: "Three Motets (Ave Maris Stella; O Maria Maris Stella/Ti Theotoko; Resurgentis/Dhefte lavete/Christos anesti) for vocal ensemble * 2018: "Tanninim" for tuba and piano * 2018: "Transfiguration" for vocal ensemble and choir * 2019: "Imperaytriz de la Ciutat Joyosa" for organetto * 2019: "O Angels and Archangels" for soprano, cornetto and bass viol * 2019: "Stephans-Weihnacht" for soloists, choir and ensemble * 2020: "Piano Book" for piano * 2020: "Wingtip Vortex" for flute * 2020: "Civitas Sancti" for vocal ensemble * 2020: "Bird in Space" for soprano saxophone


Selected recordings

* Aflame, He Who clotherd Himself with Light, Moons and Suns NDR Choir, Raschèr Saxophone Quartet C2 Hamburg Es Dur ES 2081 * Akáthistos Hymn Cappella Romana CR418-2CD * A Lion's Sleep ECM New Series 1869 * Apokathilosis Raumklang Rkap 10117 * Canticum Canticorum I ECM New Series 1614/15 * Canticum Canticorum I Atma Classique ACD2 2284 * Chalice of Wisdom CD "Prinos euharistic", Theological Faculty, Iași * Endechas y Canciones ECM New Series 1614/15 * Fioriture Orange Mountain Music OMM 0107 * Imperaytriz de la ciutat joyosa Consouling Sounds SOUL0139 * Lamentation of the Virgin Oehms Classics OC 354 * Passion & Resurrection Hyperion CDA 66999 * Ravenna Sanctus Warner Classics R2 146364 * Simeron Channel Classics CC 72616 * Supplication for Peace Oehms Classics OC1714 * Te Apostolit Cappella Romana CR 412-CD * Troparion of Kassiana ECM New Series 1869 * When Augustus Reigned Naxos 9.70039 * Words of the Angel ECM New Series 1753


References


External links

*
Ivan Moody

academia.edu

CESEM

UEF

Doctoral thesis by Kevin Coker on the music of Ivan Moody
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moody, Ivan 1964 births Living people English Eastern Orthodox Christians Members of the Orthodox Church of Finland 21st-century classical composers Classical composers of church music 20th-century classical composers Male classical composers