Epitaph I: Souviens-Toi (Oradour-sur-Glane)

Souviens-Toi is the first in a series of works under the collective title of ‘Epitaph’. During the Second World War the French village of Oradour-sur-Glane, was the scene of one of the Nazi’s worst atrocities. In reprisal for resistance activities, an SS major arrived there with 120 men in the early afternoon of 10 June 1944 and rounded up the entire population. The men were shot and the women and children taken to the church and burnt: 642 people were murdered. At sunset the village was set on fire. Oradour has not been rebuilt though its remains can still be seen: beneath the name of the village have been added the poignant words ‘Souviens-Toi’ – remember.

 

The first performance was given by Linda Merrick (clarinet) and Andrew Wilkinson (piano) in the Purcell Room, South Bank, London on 12 December 1986. It was later recorded on the Serendipity label by Linda Merrick and Benjamin Frith (Martin Ellerby Chamber Music SERCD1) released in 1991 which included notes by the author Jonathan Coe.

 

The work was newly recorded in 2020 by Linda Merrick (clarinet) and Benjamin Powell (piano) on the MER label. Please consult the composer’s website at martinellerby.com for further information on this and other recordings in the Epitaph series.

 

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