MacMillan, James: Ninian

A concerto for clarinet & orchestra

Commissioned for the 1997 celebrations of the Year of Ninian, one of the founding fathers of Christianity in Scotland. St Ninian, the first bishop of Whithorn, was believed to have arrived in Galloway in the south-west of the country in 397 AD, nearly two centuries before St Columba landed on Iona. The three movements are based on three of the so-called Miracles of Ninian, 'The reiver and the bull', 'The dream of Pectgils' and 'A mystical vision of the Christ-child'. These strange and evocative tales about the saint and his followers were documented in a Latin poem written a few centuries after his death. As well as being a concerto, the work is therefore also a collection of tone-paintings which give an impression of these ancient tales. A vibrant and approachable concerto which offers a satisfying balance between depth of expression and technical display.