Page 266 - Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Coverage Book 2023-24

Throughout the ninety minute performance there was an extremely
interesting use of visual effects to complement the musical
foreground, with the colours of each respective planet being used to
light the upper areas of the auditorium as their piece was played.
Although incredibly minimalist, this nonetheless helped to subtly
build on the atmosphere being created by the small orchestra.

The last piece in the suite is a new work: Earth, The Silent Planet. It is
fittingly dynamic, speeding up and crescendoing before slowing to a
crawl and a whisper for yet another build up. The variety of
instruments used is here at its peak as well: everything from mouth
organs to rotating percussion instruments I’ve never seen before.
The music is accompanied by the spoken word of Phoebe Hanson
throughout a great deal of this as we are asked to reflect on our
planet. At times this did feel somewhat drawn out and strayed a little
close to beat poetry, but it did an excellent job of augmenting the
atmosphere nonetheless.

It is only appropriate for something dealing so intimately with our
own planet to approach some of its issues and this is another feature
that is at the core of The Silent Planet suite as a whole. With the
spoken word introductions to each piece by Phoebe Hanson the
planets and their representations are linked to issues such as war
and the climate crisis. The order of the works is also symbolic, to an
extent: through war to peace, through nature, joy.

Definitely an experience for such a short suite, and a novel and
thought-provoking arrangement of Holst’s classics for a new
audience.