The North Wind Was a Woman

The three pieces on this disc represent David Bruce's highly personal musical and spiritual responses to nature. Cymbeline (an old Celtic word meaning 'Lord of the Sun') draws on ancient religious attitudes to the sun, and is framed as a trinity of birth, life and death, as represented by sunrise, noon and sunset. The North Wind was a Woman song cycle treats various aspects of nature as human characters, as if they were manifestations of human emotions. So the North Wind for example, is a jilted lover who 'rattles your windows, bangs at your doors'. Scored for a folk-imbued ensemble, featuring prominent parts for mandolin and harp, the cycle ranges from the wild rage ofthe 'lunatic moon' to the sombre and tender loneliness of the mountain contemplating her only friend throughout the years – the night sky. The Consolation of Rain is a moving reflection on loss and the restorative power of nature. When a loved one passes away the atoms of their body literally become part of the natural world, which means that just by observing nature, rain, weather, youare in a very real sense 'with your loved one'; a fact which is immensely consoling.