The third concert of an exceptional new series of five dates of contemporary music at the beautiful candlelit venue of St Mary le Strand. A unique opportunity to experience new and innovative works by some of the UK leading contemporary music artists. St Mary le Strand is an outstanding and intimate venue, well suited for musical performance. There are also many bars and restaurants nearby to complete your evening.
Metamorphosis is a 1 hour installation piece originally composed for four pianists and paired with four improvising visual artists, with music by John William Griffith II. It has now been transcribed into an accessible format for piano four-hands, an intimate reimagining of the original work performed by the composer and Roberto Boschelli. Inspired by M.C. Escher’s Metamorphosis II, the piece explores the gradual transformation of musical ideas over a long period of time, focusing on subtle harmonic and textural shifts. The piece is intended as a meditation, inviting the listener into a state of mindfulness and introspection.
John is an American composer, conductor, pianist, and singer based in London. He received his Master of Music in Composition at the Royal College of Music in 2023, with a second study in conducting. His mentors at the RCM included Alison Kay, Eric Whitacre, and Howard Williams. John received his Bachelor of Music in Composition from the IndianaUniversity Jacobs School of Music in 2020, where he received multiple awards for his choral, opera, and orchestral compositions. His teachers at IU included Claude Baker, Don Freund, Sven-David Sandström, Aaron Travers, David Dzubay, and Andrew Sohn. He was named the winner of the RCM Autumn 2022 Concerto Competition for his orchestral piece, When I’m reminded of home and was commissioned to compose Metamorphosis: Music Visualised for theRCM Great Exhibitionists Concert Series.In the summer of 2021, John curated the performance series “Chamber Music at Copshaholm” in collaboration with the History Museum of South Bend. For this project, he composed nine solo works for cello, oboe, violin, horn, and piano, performing as a pianist. He also served as the coordinator and fundraiser for the event, which was featured prominently in the local press.As a conductor, John has led orchestras in standard works including Tchaikovsky’s SymphonyNo. 4, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7, and Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9. He served as the assistant conductor to Timothy Brown at the 2022 Horto Music Festival (Greece), preparing the chorus forHaydn’s The Creation.John has developed a particular interest in writing and conducting choral music.