Nicolas de Staël (1914-1955) was a Russian-born French painter whose turbulent life often overshadowed his short career.
Composer John Casken describes de Staël’s canvases as being as vibrant and vivid of any artist working at the time, and Casken was very struck by the painter’s bold use of blocks of colour, the textured layers of paint, and the sheer confidence and energy of his works. Casken visited the retrospective exhibition of de Staël’s work at the Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris [see the exhibition review in The Guardian] and the result was his Toiles de Staël (De Staël Canvases) for flute, viola and harp.
The work was written for Aglica Trio ( Carys Gittins, flute Agnieszka Żyniewicz, viola Lise Vandersmissen, harp) who premiered it in Paris last year, and they will be giving the work’s UK premiere at St Paul’s Church, Rectory Grove, Clapham on Friday 31 January 2025 as part of Clapham Chamber Concerts current series. The concert also includes music by Debussy, Ravel and Ibert, along with Hilary Tann’s From the Song of Amergin and William Mathias’ Zodiac Trio.
In three movements, Casken’s trio is based directly on de Staël’s paintings, the first movement on the 1948 Hommage à Piranèse, the second Paysage on a selection of landscapes and the third on the 1946-1947 De la danse.
John Casken won the inaugural Michael Tippett Award for The Shackled King, a drama based on King Lear written for Sir John Tomlinson and mezzo soprano Rozanna Madylus and Counterpoise Ensemble. Rozanna Madylus and pianist Anna Tilbrook premiered Four Ghost Songs for the City Music Foundation in July 2024. The Joyful Company of Singers will release a CD of choral music in autumn 2025 and the Nash Ensemble will premiere Mantle for piano and wind quintet at Wigmore Hall on 18 March 2025.
Full details of the Aglica Trio’s concerto from Clapham Chamber Concerts website.
