Colin Matthews's Metamorphosis for chorus and orchestra was revived be the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Vladimir Jurowski in October. The final part of Renewal, Matthews’s vast quartet of orchestral works from the 90s, this 13-minute work for chorus and orchestra sets a text derived from Ovid’s Metamorphoses describing the philosophy of Pythagoras: ‘Nothing in the whole world endures unchanged… everything is renewed’. Much of the music is underpinned by deep pedal C, and its hushed, mysterious mood make it an excellent curtain-raiser to Mahler’s Second Symphony, with which it shared the programme.
Matthews is currently at work on a song cycle for soprano and ensemble. On 10 December his Hidden Variables features in a concert by the LA Philharmonic New Music Ensemble and Susanna Mälkki.