The premiere took place on 1 April, 2023, at St Mary’s Church, Henley-on-Thames and is a collaboration with the poet, Kate Wakeling. This 18 minute cantata for mixed chorus, soprano soloist and chamber orchestra is all about the relationship between humanity, water and ice and the work traces a time line from the Great Frost Fair of 1683/4 to the melting of the Greenland ice sheet in our time.
A note from Tim Wilson, Chairman of the Henley Choral Society: ‘As a charity, one of our objectives is to bring the highest quality musical talent to our local community. For our special Gold Anniversary, we have gone one step further by commissioning one of the UK’s most respected composers to create a completely new work on a compelling contemporary theme. The Ice is Listening is by turns warm, witty, atmospheric and thought-provoking and we can’t wait to perform it.”
