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Welcome

A Night of Music Composed by Andrew Goodwin

Welcome to A Night of Music Composed by Andrew Goodwin, a special and intimate recital that offers a personal insight into the creative world of one of Australia’s most respected classical singers. Set against the peaceful backdrop of Watsons Bay, this private concert is both a premiere of new works and a rare opportunity to hear a new chapter in Andrew’s musical journey.
 

The program explores themes of love, loss, resilience, and beauty, brought to life through the collaboration of some of Australia’s finest classical musicians.


Thank you to all who will join this evening. Your presence and support are truly appreciated, and heartfelt thanks to those who have contributed through donations.

A special thank you to our long-time sponsors Judith Neilson AM, Peronelle and Jim Windeyer for their unwavering commitment and ongoing support.

Deep appreciation to Lina Safro for providing this exceptional venue, and for her warm hospitality and support to making this event possible.


Finally, warmest thanks to Maria Timofeeva, whose dedication, passion, and vision brought this concert to life.

We hope you will enjoy this unforgettable night of music.

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Artists Bio

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Program Overview

01  S t r i n g  Q u a r t e t  N o  1
I. First Movement

II. Adagio

III. Scherzo

IV. Finale

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02  S o n g  C y c l e  o n  P o e t r y  o f  W a r

I. Anthem for Doomed Youth

(Wilfred Owen)

II. Furlough

III. Rendezvous with Death

(Alan Seeger)

 

03  “ P e a c e  I  l e a v e  w i t h  y o u ”

Arranged by James Crabb
 

04  S o n g s  f r o m  t h e  S i l e n c e
(Victoria Young)

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I. When I am Young

II. Better Than This

III. Keep Hanging On
 

Introduction to the Program

S t r i n g  Q u a r t e t  N o . 1

After composing several choral works, Andrew was drawn to write for string quartet for two main reasons. First, his musical education began with the violin, so the string quartet felt like familiar territory. Second, working with just four instruments challenged him to be more inventive. With choral writing, he often found that if he ran into a tricky harmonic situation, he could simply add another voice to resolve it. The quartet offered no such luxury—it demanded clarity and creativity within tighter constraints. All of which, he felt, was beneficial to his growth as a composer.

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There is no doubt that the inspiration for the opening of this quartet stems from Andrew’s formative years as a student in St Petersburg, Russia. He was, in many ways, immersed—almost baptised—in the worlds of Romanticism and neoclassicism, and he loved everything about it.

 

This quartet feels both like a homage and an exploration, shaped by a culture where music is not just heard, but deeply lived.

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To imagine the opening of the first and second movements, picture yourself standing alone, as Andrew did many times, in a snow-covered field, the temperature falling below –25°C. The finale, which borders on a fugue, is a nod to the years he spent as an organist, learning and playing the music of J.S. Bach.

1

S o n g  C y c l e  o n  P o e t r y  o f  W a r

A n t h e m  f o r  D o o m e d  Y o u t h

( 1 9 1 7  -  W i l f r e d  O w e n )

A powerful anti-war poem that laments the brutal deaths of young soldiers in World War I, contrasting the lack of traditional funeral rites with the genuine grief of those left behind. It highlights the dehumanisation of soldiers, comparing them to "cattle" and emphasising the futility of war through the absence of proper burials and the overwhelming sounds of battle replacing traditional mourning. The poem serves as a powerful elegy, honoring the soldiers' individual deaths and the lasting impact of their loss.

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F u r l o u g h

An instrumental interlude portrays the stillness and alienation of returning from the front. Peace is neither full nor permanent; it is haunted by memory.

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R e n d e z v o u s   w i t h   D e a t h

( 1 9 1 6  -  A l a n  S e e g e r )

This poem expresses a soldier’s acceptance of his inevitable death during war. He envisions meeting Death at a battlefield “rendezvous” in springtime, a season usually associated with life and renewal, which contrasts starkly with the destruction he faces. Despite longing for peace, love, and comfort, he is committed to his duty and prepared to face death when his time comes. The poem captures a mix of courage, resignation, and the tragic intersection of life’s beauty with the horrors of war.

2

“ P e a c e  I  l e a v e  w i t h  you ”

Originally conceived as a choral work and performed to acclaim in Sydney and New York, this piece stands as a luminous expression of calm, introspection, and spiritual depth. For this performance, it is heard in a new light—reimagined for accordion in a premiere arrangement by James Crabb.

3

S o n g s  f r o m  t h e  S i l e n c e

We end the evening with three songs Andrew wrote with text by Victoria Young. The songs trace a journey through longing, grief, desire, inner strength, and finally, a kind of transcendence through memory or dream. There is a quiet resilience beneath the sorrow, and a luminous beauty in the way love, even if lost or unattainable, is held and honoured.

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1 . W h e n   I  a m   Y o u n g

2 . B e t t e r   T h a n   T h i s

3 . K e e p   H a n g i n g   O n

4

Lyrics

Vinyl Player

Anthem for Doomed Youth

What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?

      — Only the monstrous anger of the guns.

      Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle

Can patter out their hasty orisons.

No mockeries now for them; no prayers nor bells; 

      Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs,—

The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells;

      And bugles calling for them from sad shires.

 

What candles may be held to speed them all?

      Not in the hands of boys, but in their eyes

Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes.

      The pallor of girls' brows shall be their pall;

Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds,

And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds.

1

I Have a Rendezvous
with Death

I have a rendezvous with Death
At some disputed barricade,
When Spring comes back with rustling shade
And apple-blossoms fill the air—
I have a rendezvous with Death
When Spring brings back blue days and fair.

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It may be he shall take my hand
And lead me into his dark land
And close my eyes and quench my breath—
It may be I shall pass him still.
I have a rendezvous with Death
On some scarred slope of battered hill,
When Spring comes round again this year
And the first meadow-flowers appear.

 

God knows ’twere better to be deep
Pillowed in silk and scented down,
Where love throbs out in blissful sleep,
Pulse nigh to pulse, and breath to breath,
Where hushed awakenings are dear...
But I’ve a rendezvous with Death
At midnight in some flaming town,
When Spring trips north again this year,
And I to my pledged word am true,
I shall not fail that rendezvous.

2

3

Peace I leave with you

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. 
I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

When I am Young

By Victoria Young

Now all of the madding crowd is gone

the silence is mine

Time has no sway with me

 

Moonlight is a silver sea

I dive alone and go deep

To where my favourite film always plays

 

Where you steal me to the water's edge

Saturate me with the world's first kiss

Where dreams are young and love is mine

 

When morning light it tries to pull me up into the day

The mercy in dreaming holds me down

Half awake I drift floating in another world

More real to me and more desired

 

Your hair blazing in the molten sun

Here we saunter summer's boundless fields

You love me now as you did then

 

Desolation leaves me for a while

Love unyielding as the bonds of time

When I am young your love is mine

When I am young and you are mine.

4

Better Than This

By Victoria Young

I command better than this

I don't need another stolen kiss

and if you wanted how I’ve wanted you

You'd keep me so close

 

Let the morning light pour over me

Feel the glow of conquest in defeat 

It was so hard - melted all of my resolve

Never to let the craving show

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I surrender all that's wanting inside me

I relinquish all the weakness, all the need

Throw some ice on the fire and 

Let the flames all die

Stamp out every ember

 

I have been so lost and out of place

Not for me, your loyalty and faith

Though it hurts more than I'll ever let you know

I'm letting it go

 

There is something dark within me, still

That would steal you, captivate your will

It always begs for what could never be for us

and it just won't let me go

 

All this longing holding me

Even if you did, it would be unfulfilled

Out of  the ash, out of fire 

my sun will blaze so high

Leave behind what I can't have

set me aflame, leave me to burn  

5

6

Keep Hanging On

There's an old sadness 

That hides far behind your eyes

Even when your smile 

lights the whole room

 

Everyone here is in love with you

It's not enough

When you've been travelling 

A long rough road

All on your own

 

Keep hanging on

Cause I know, you are strong

Keep hanging on

Cause I know, you are strong

 

My love, you are a secret grief 

I carry In a joyful heart

I would carry yours if I could

 

I hold you in my dreams at night

Can you feel me?

Send a tender touch up to the stars

 

To shine on you so far away... 

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