COMPOSER MARGOT DEAN
Compositions
In Search of Diamonds
A song of love
Duration: 4 minutes
​
Words and Music by Composer Margot Dean
Arrangement by Sam Roberts
Guitar by Sam Roberts
Vocals by Rylee Desalis
Produced and Engineered by Kieran Roberts at
Moment Music, Wanniassa
Listen
“The blue whale and human existence are interconnected, felt in the pulse and question mark of the human heartbeat. Choir voices soar as the blue whale sings to provide an unforgettable encounter that leaves us in awe of our close connection.”
​
The blue whale and humans have evolved to co-exist at this period in time, yet we must question whether we will co-exist in a future time due to the endangered status of this beautiful animal.
The World Wildlife Fund writes that “the blue whale is the largest animal on the planet… [and] has a heart the size of a Volkswagen Beetle... They are the loudest animals on Earth and are even louder than a jet engine... Their low frequency whistle can be heard for hundreds of miles and is probably used to attract other blue whales.” https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/whale/blue-whale/
The gentle murmuring and sonorous bellows of the blue whale join the human voice in Blue Whale Heart Song, while the bass drum reproduces the human heartbeat. Through the pulse and question mark of the heartbeat, our interconnected existence is felt; as a human species we also face threats to our own survival.
The piece was written in response to a call for compositions by Sailing the Sonic Sea Symposium, Canada, which gave “an attentive ear to what underwater sounds can reveal in a time of rapid change... With the oceans warming up at an unprecedented level, sounds (and noises) travel faster underwater, the oceans are louder and disorienting for many species relying on echolocation to communicate and orient themselves. The acoustic explorations of the changing conditions of our oceans from an anthropological perspective can further contribute to new forms of knowledge about how humans relate and are aware of the impact of climate change on the underwater world.” https://sailingsonicsea.com/
Using a soundtrack of authentic blue whale song, our underwater encounter with this giant mammal in Blue Whale Heart Song sends the human voices soaring as the blue whale sings, providing an unforgettable experience of human voice and whale song, leaving us in awe of our close connection and heightening our desire to see this wonderful co-existence continue.
Licencing information
Blue whale sounds spliced into Blue Whale Heart Song with no changes and sourced from the Ocean Networks Canada SoundCloud page: https://soundcloud.com/oceannetworkscanada/blue-whale-song
Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en
Blue Whale Heart Song
A choral work for SATB voices, bass drum and Blue Whale soundtrack Duration: 3'51"
​
Listen
Soul Food for Solo Bassoon
A piece for unaccompanied bassoon
in three movements
Total duration: 10:00 minutes
I. Mesmerise 4:00
II. Thrill 3:50
III. Fly Free 2:50
A journey of the soul through sadness and solemnity to unadulterated joy.
An anguished cry, the passion of romantic love, thrills of electricity, and intense tenderness give in to laughs and a moment of wistfulness culminating in a joyous conclusion.
Available at Imagine Music Publishing:
https://stores.imaginemusicpublishing.com/margot-dean/
as well as ​JW Pepper, Trevco,
Sheet Music Plus, or
order at your local sheet music store.
Listen
In the Heavenly Hour
A piece for a cappella choir
Four voices SATB
Total duration: 6'30"
Score available on request
​​
"Through the beauty and drama of the heavenly hour at twilight, see the call of nature at its most perilous, drawing us all in closer together. Soar high and feel the transcendence to navigate our way through in this glistening drop of heavenly music."
​
‘The heavenly hour’ is known as a time of ethereal, unnerving beauty in the twilight before nightfall. Perhaps we are in the heavenly hour right now, with greenhouse gases forming in the heavens above us and our ‘midnight hour’ fast approaching.
It is a momentous time as we sense the warming power of the air amidst changing weather, and we ask ourselves, what type of world would we want to live in?
The choir hums, like a mother rocking her child, giving comfort. We draw in closer together and hear the heartbeat of time, challenging us to greater things.
‘In the Heavenly Hour’ aims to uplift us, take us to a glorious high and leave us with hope and beauty resounding. We are thus empowered to lift our world up and onto a higher plane.
A thousand worlds and this is ours. Which world shall it be?
To hold these hours so close to our hearts, the seconds to midnight we fear.
The fading ice and fast rising seas shake the rocks of humanity.
These thousand worlds, we need only one for the sake of humanity.
This is the hour. This is our world.
Hold me close and keep me by your side.
In twilight sense the nearing tide.
Feel the ground is shifting now. Catch the air, the warming power.
Hold me close, the hour nears. Clouds are pouring sails of tears.
In the heavens find the truth of our sanity.
May the heavens spare our destiny,
though the weather may not spare our palaces.
Soar into the clouds with me. Go well. Soar high.
In the heavenly hour feel the clock of time is here.
Feel the heartbeat. Hear the beating of time.
Listen
Also arranged for two-part female voices:
