Live Recording
Graeme Thewlis - Piano
The Swan Brings Winter on its Wings
The Swan Brings Winter on its wings was written for Solo Piano for Graeme Thewlis. The work is based on a bit of ancient weather folklore:
‘While the bonnie Cuckoo gladdens us
With many a merry song.
The woodcock comes, and with the swan
Brings winter on its wing’.
In Russia there is a similar saying ‘The Swan brings snow on its bill’. An early arrival of Swans in this country was always believed to be followed quickly by a cold snap. The work begins adagio with a simple melody-this moves onto a more florid passage, followed by a contrasting section in ¾ as Winter sets in-at the end you can hear a recap of the opening theme as the skies clear.