Cette œuvre tire son titre d’une peinture de Daniel Maclise (1806-1870) exposée dans la galerie d’art de la ville de Manchester qui s’inspire d’une légende celtique : une nymphe de l’eau tombe amoureuse d’un mortel et lutte désespérément pour quitter son élément et rejoindre son prétendant sur la terre. Les dieux, pris de pitié devant ses échecs, la changent en harpe, transformant ses complaintes en une douce musique aérienne qui se glisse entre les cordes. Le tableau montre la nymphe juste avant sa métamorphose. _Extrait du programme du festival Présences de Radio France 2007, reproduit avec l’aimable autorisation de Radio France._ _The Origin of the Harp_ was commissioned by Halle Orchestra The first performance was given by members of the Halle Orchestra conducted by the composer in the Free Trade Hall, Manchester, on 6 October 1994\. _The Origin of the Harp_ is recorded by Thomas Ades and Friends on the EMI Debut Series 'Living Toys' CDZ 5 72271 2 Programme Note This piece takes its title from a painting by Daniel Maclise (1806-1870) in the Manchester City Art Gallery. Its subject is the Celtic Legend of a water nymph who falls for a mortal and struggles hopelessly to leave her element and join him on land. The Gods, taking pity on her failure, intervene and turn her into a harp, transforming her weeping into a gentle music of wind through strings. The painting shows her in the moment preceding the metamorphosis, the strands of her hair framed by a triangle of her body, a rock and her arm. In this piece, too, the harp itself is not featured but suggested, at the start of the fourth and final section, after a flash of divine intervention.

1. Dolcissimo ed espressivo
2. Largo con moto
3. Spettrale
4. [Sans titre]