Nathan selected to represent Wales at the ISCM World Music Days 2023
Nathan's choral work, 'i breathe', has been selected by the International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM) to represent Wales at this year's World New Music Days. The piece will be performed as part of the ISCM's festival which takes place in South Africa from 24 November – 3 December 2023.
Nathan remarks, "It is an honour to be selected to represent Wales at ISCM World New Music Days this year in South Africa – a real ‘pinch-me moment’, especially when shortlisted among such talented friends and colleagues. This work has really taken on a life of its own, and it is so heartening that the hard work of its commissioners – the young voices of the National Youth Training Choirs of Great Britain – and the superb Welsh haiku poets I collaborated with are getting the recognition they deserve. They continue to be key to its ongoing success."
i breathe was commissioned by National Youth Choirs of Great Britain in 2021, in partnership with Steinberg Media / Dorico, and has gone on to receive public and critical acclaim. In 2022, Nathan was awarded 'Best Music Creator' by Making Music UK, in recognition of this work and the collaboration as a whole.
Nathan was one of six composers shortlisted by the Welsh panel for consideration by the ISCM. More information about the process and the Welsh shortlist can be found here: https://www.tycerdd.org/iscm-2023-selected-work
What is the ISCM?
Since our founding in 1922, the International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM) has grown to include more than 60 organizations in over 50 countries, on every continent. It the leading international forum for the advancement, dissemination, and interchange of new music. Through ISCM, members promote contemporary music in all its varied forms, strengthening musical life in their local contexts and making their music and its creators known to world. The ISCM embraces the diverse music of its many members without discrimination on the basis of race, gender, religion, or politics.
More about i breathe
For more information about i breathe, and to listen to the work, please visit this dedicated webpage: https://nathanjamesdearden.com/i-breathe
Funding partners
Nathan is grateful for the generous support of the Arts Council of Wales’ Internaional Opportunities Fund and Royal Holloway University of London for funding this project in South Africa.