Jan-Peter de Graaff – The Bells of St. Clement’s

“The Bells of St. Clement’s is a work in three movements based on the English Nursery Rhyme “Oranges and Lemons” (Say the bells of St. Clement’s). This nursery rhyme plays an important role in the novel ‘1984’ by George Orwell. In the novel the nursery rhyme is a symbol of the notion that the promise of freedom in a totalitarian society might be another form of oppression, where hope is a terrible illusion. In the piece, the musical material tries to escape from a mechanical form to a more fluent, almost impressionistic environment. In the first movement in melody, in the second movement in rhythm and in the third movement in harmony, but the pulse in the end stays and takes over and becomes more and more dominant, destroying the beauty and atmosphere.”