Thomas Hyde enjoys writing chamber music above all other mediums: it seems to demand from him a particular kind of concentration of technique, as well as providing the opportunity for greater subtlety in his use of instrumental colours. He also relishes the opportunity to write really virtuosic music for individual players. Three Dancers is a short ‘curtain raiser’ for piano trio, taking its inspiration from a painting by Picasso, while both Autumnal and the String Quartet – his two most extended chamber works – arise out of seasonal imagery; the latter being an emotional journey from the crisis of winter to the rebirth of spring. The Second Suite for solo Cello is the earliest work, composed when he was a student at the Royal Academy of Music, and a series of shorter works, Winter Music, Nocturnes for solo piano and a little Birthday Song for string quartet complete this varied collection.

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