Musical Vision

			"I knock the mud off my boots and turn it into music. . . . Or the snow, or the sand! Explorations of different corners of the earth usually lead to new pieces - England and Scotland of course, but also in France (Paradis moins cinq), Italy (La Maèsta), Norway (Moskenesøy), Oman (Seas Not Mingling), Poland . . . New things have come from all of these places"

"The sky inspires me - doubly! Both looking down from the sky from a glider and looking from the earth into the night sky - with its array of cosmic phenomena which are often the model for musical processes in my composition"

Angel in a thermal (the second movement of the clarinet quintet Angel Music) tries to capture the serenity of flight. Mu Ara (full orchestra) and Velan Eclipses (solo cello and wind orchestra) both attempt description of exoplanets - the planets around other suns which we are rapidly gaining more knowledge about.

	*...and dreams*
	"My hero is the poet-composer Caedmon, who lived in Whitby in the 7th century. Caedmon was a cowhand, but one day he was challenged in a dream to 'sing of the creation of all things'. Quite a tall order that, but he managed it in his dream - and he remembered his song the next day! That kind of achievement - bringing into reality the musical visions I am privileged to have - is what lies behind all of my work."