Echoes of a Vanished People
Jim O’Leary
Echoes of a Vanished People is a new recording by Island composer Jim O’Leary, released by the Centrediscs label on May 2. With a focus on intimate songs for soprano and small ensembles, it surveys music composed between 2007 and 2022 for long-time collaborator, singer Helen Pridmore.
Themes of nature, longing, and the otherworldly are central to all compositions. The album includes a setting of poems by Newfoundland author Michael Crummey. Another song, “Susan Pennefather Gray”—originally commissioned to celebrate PEI’s 2014 Sesquicentennial—was recently selected for performance at the prestigious ISCM World New Music Days 2025 Festival, being held in Portugal.
In addition to Pridmore, the recording features David Rogosin (piano), Karin Aurell (flutes), Eileen Walsh (clarinet), James Gardiner (trumpet), and Dale Sorensen (trombone).