KEVIN PIRKER

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Kevin Pirker is a Halifax-based composer with a Bachelor of Music degree in Composition. He has studied under Derek Charke at Acadia University in Wolfville, NS. In 2019, he received the ‘Barbara Pentland Award for Outstanding Composition’ through Chor Leoni’s C/4 Competition with the piece for TTBB and piano – “My Light with Yours” – and was the winner of the DaCapo Chamber Choir’s 2019 ‘NewWorks’ Competition with his SATB a cappella piece, “Meditations”. He has been a collaborative pianist for the Acadia University Chorus and the Annapolis Valley Honour Choir. He has deep passion for Modern Classical, Romantic Classical and Contemporary Jazz (these, among many others), and his music takes inspiration from each of these genres. Kevin is eagerly looking forward to everything the future has in store.

She Walks in Beauty

by Kevin Pirker

SATB a cappella – CP 1756 – duration 4:10

Seeking out text for any new project is not always an easy endeavour. It can be one of the most challenging parts of the creative process; but every now and then, I come across text that virtually composes itself. When I read Lord Byron’s poem, “She Walks in Beauty” for the first time, it took me on a creative rollercoaster. His writing is filled with vivid imagery, and it has an inherent musicality that captivated me right from the start. There are seven sections that make up this piece; each one correlating directly with the emotional content of the text. The ebb-and-flow between stanzas, as well as the ambiguous nature of particular lines inspired me to instil the idea of movement through chromaticism and (at times) non-functional harmony. (Kevin Pirker)

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