Caitlin Boyle & Dobrochna Zubek - From Dusk Till Dawn (2026) Hi-Res

From Dusk Till Dawn comprises 20th and 21st century works. It takes the listener on an emotional journey achieved through contrasting harmonies and a diverse palette of musical language. The story begins with works by Rebecca Clarke, a prolific British composer and violist. Her Two Pieces for Viola and Cello offer a succinct and dynamic harmonic cocktail with sharp, folk-like chords and rhythmic passages full of mystery and charm. They are followed by Five Bucolics by Witold Lutosławski, one of Poland’s greatest composers and the father of aleatorism. The transcription featured here is our own evolution, the musical choices made while preparing for concerts and this recording. The bucolics are full of life and contrast: light and dark, tension and resolution. Limestone & Felt by living American composer, Caroline Shaw, is brimming with unique textures and articulations. The majority of the piece is played pizzicato, with occasional double stops and irregular rhythms, creating a musical storm of extreme contrasts.

Shostakovich’s Song of Ophelia evokes a sense of longing for a lost lover. It is Hamlet reimagined, suffused with sadness and a sense of betrayal. Ophelia’s deep nostalgia for a happier time is captured by the original’s beautiful lyrics.

The Break of Dawn is written by Andrzej Zubek, a celebrated Polish composer who happens to be Dobrochna’s father. The piece makes its recording premiere on this album. Reminiscent of a jazz rondo, it journeys from slow ballad to mad improv, to scherzo and back. The recording concludes with three pieces by Ukrainian-born Reinhold Glière. Prelude, Gavotte and Berceuse — the last a kind of dreamy lullaby — evoke the old continent in a lush, neoromantic style.