Dennehy: Land of Winter

Donnacha Dennehy's Land of Winter is out now on Nonesuch Records. The piece, performed by the composer's longtime collaborators Alarm Will Sound and conductor Alan Pierson, explores the subtleties of Ireland's seasons via twelve connected sections representing the months of the year. Also out today is a video for the track "July," directed by Jack Phelan in County Wicklow, Ireland, and starring Camille O'Sullivan, which you can watch below. Alarm Will Sound performs Land of Winter at New York City's Irish Arts Center on December 11 and 12.

Alarm Will Sound is a twenty-member touring ensemble led by Artistic Director Alan Pierson that commissions, performs, and records innovative works by established and emerging composers, especially works that incorporate theatrical and multimedia elements by choreographers, visual artists, designers, and directors. Described by the New York Times as "as close to being a rock band as a chamber orchestra can be," its wideranging artistic vision looks beyond genre-electronic vs. acoustic, high-modernist vs. pop-influenced, conventional classical concert vs. multimedia experience. The ensemble has been featured on two previous Nonesuch recordings: Donnacha Dennehy's The Hunger and 2009's a/rhythmia, performing fourteen pieces from composers spanning six centuries.