NEWS
December, 2019
Premiere with Subotica Philharmonic, Serbia
Presented by PARMA Recordings, Ave Maris Stella for soprano and string orchestra premiered with the Subotica Philharmonic orchestra and Alenka
Ponjavić Vojnić in the City Halls, Subtica on 12 December, gaining national coverage.
April, 2019
Voices of Earth and Air
"Presenting the best that modern choral compositions have to offer". Settings of traditional prayers are mingled with ethereal stories and otherworldly visions, and each of the eight compositions both stand unique and work together harmoniously to create a collection that nods to the future or choral music. Featuring Helen's acclaimed Gloria in excelsis Deo. Available for purchase.
August, 2018
Florence Choral Festivals
Since 2016, Helen has been an Emerging Composer with Florence Choral Festivals, with music included in the Modern & Contemporary Music category. Named after the great Italian artistic masters, the festivals bring together singers from around the world. Helen's Gloria premiered in 2017 with top chamber choir Kammerchor Manila who won both the contemporary category and the Grand Prix. In August 2018, the University of The Philippines Singing Ambassadors delivered another stunning performance.
May, 2016
Recording in Prague
Helen is thrilled to be working with Perth Festival of the Arts to write a new work for the 45th annual Festival. Sing to the Lord a new Song will premiere during the Festival Service on 22 May in St John's Kirk, Perth, under the baton of Craig Dennis. See Press Coverage. Helen joined Perthshire artist Georgia Crook for a live interview on The Janice Forsyth Show on BBC Radio Scotland on 17 May.
September, 2019
UK Winter Concerts
Helen's choral music will feature in four winter concerts across Perthshire, including the premiere of Credo by Pitlochry & District Choral Society and Wings of the Morning by Anita MacKenzie Mills and Margaret Sikora as part of 'Hidden Voices' promoting music by female composers.
April, 2019
Inside Story Feature
An interview on Helen's music and upcoming recording release featured on PARMA Recording's Inside Story. Read about Helen's journey into composing and the new recording. Gloria in excelsis Deo featured on radio show Music of our Mothers, broadcast in the USA on 10 April. Host Ellen Grolman reviewed the work as 'spectacular writing for voices'.
November, 2017
Evening of Sacred Song
A showcase evening of Sacred Song concert in All Saints Church, Perthshire, saw Helen and a choir of 22 singers selected from across Perth & Kinross perform a programme of new choral music all written by Helen; an ambitious ask of singers and audiences! The evening saw the world premiere of May the Road Rise Up! and the UK premiere of Helen's setting of the Gloria. The sell-out concert concluded with a standing ovation and raised £860 for the Perth-based charity PKAVS and All Saints church.
January, 2016
My Voice, Christ Church
As a female choral composer, Helen was delighted to work with The University of Oxford to compose a new work My Voice for an international conference on the theme of 'Women and the Canon'. The work for female voices and piano explored gender, voice and authority though composition and performance. The premiere took place in the stunning setting of Christ Church, Oxford on 22 January.
May 2019
Pushing Boundaries
Alongside composing, Helen administers one of Scotland's leading independent arts festivals, Perth Festival of the Arts. In the run-up to the 2019 Festival, Helen was interviewed on composing and her new role with the festival by Keith Bruce at The Herald.
December, 2018
Mass for the Spirit
Building on her cornerstone work Gloria in excelsis Deo, Helen completed a full Mass in Latin for SATB chorus and piano, sharing the joy, sorrow and deep reflections of the mass. With a mixture of a cappella and accompanied movements (Kyrie, Credo, Gloria, Sanctus & Agnus Dei), the versatile 20-minute work can be sung in full, or as individual movements.
September, 2017
Recording in Prague
Working with New England, USA, production house PARMA Recordings, Helen recorded her setting of Gloria in excelsis Deo in the Academy of Performing Arts, Prague, with Prague Mixed Chamber Choir under the baton of Jiří Petrdlík. Read the PARMA Recording news blog or coverage of Helen's story by Small City Big Personality Perth. Helen's first recording will feature on a contemporary choral album released in 2019 and bringing together choral composers from around the world.
July, 2015
Ennio Morricone Award
As part of the Florence International Choir Festival 2015, Helen was invited to Italy to receive a Special Mention Award for her setting of Gloria in excelsis Deo. The award was made by a panel of judges chaired by Maestro Ennio Morricone as part of the 2nd International Competition of Choral Composition 'Ennio Morricone'.
Photo below from L to R: Helen MacKinnon, Gaetano Lorandi, Leonardo Sagliocca, Noriko Ieda, John Damsma, Andrea Angelini and Andrea Benedetti