It was such a pleasure to meet both Morten and Michael at St. Patrick's, see a choir perform his music, live, followed by the viewing of Michael's film at the DC Independent Film Festival. Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen. For me, his use of stain glass windows and sculpture helps create a transition that works. Directed by Michael Stillwater and co-produced with Doris Laesser Stillwater for Song Without Borders, Shining Night provides audiences worldwide with a rare glimpse into the inner world of the composer. We walked into the forest across the street and, for a supplement to the documentary, he asked me to comment on film about Lauridsen’s work. His music is mystical and perfectly wedded to the text, evoking the deepest expressions of the human heart. You also might—no, must—see Shining Night. Shining Night offers a glimpse into the life and music of one of America's greatest contemporary composers, National Medal of Arts recipient Morten Lauridsen, who has written much of his remarkable music in his rustic cabin on … He has been called 'the only American composer in history who can be called a mystic' by musicologist Nick Strimple. (that is why we have music after all). Directed by Michael Stillwater and co-produced with Doris Laesser Stillwater for Song Without Borders, Shining Night provides audiences worldwide with a rare glimpse into the inner world of the composer. I just watched "Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen" by Michael Stillwater and was reminded of the incredible experience I had with Sacred Passage at Flinders Island, reflected in the blog entry I posted on Friday November 12, 2010. Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen 'A man, an island, and music that moves the world' . His canon of work is sublime, and the definition of sublime as spoken by one of the speakers in this well-produced bio- documentary speaks to the higher nature of understanding that few attain and understand. Amazon.com: Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen: The Singers/Minnesota Choral Artists, Morten Lauridsen, Polyphony & Britten Sinfonia, The Dale Warland Singers, Con Anima Chamber Choir, Aberdeen Choral Society, Volti, S.F. Shining Night offers a rare glimpse into the life and music of one of America's greatest contemporary composers, National Medal of Arts recipient Morten Lauridsen, who has written much of his remarkable music in his rustic cabin on Waldron Island and his home on San Juan Island. Viewing 'Shining Night' was a life-changing experience for my choirs and our audience. So nothing is lost in his music itself, which is, in part, about the recovery from loss and what the true meaning of the loss is in that context of redemption. I was delighted when Lauridsen asked me to sit with him during the showing. Winner of two Best Documentary awards, called a 'heartening rarity' by Wall Street Journal, Shining Night offers a contemplative reflection on the life and music of Morten Lauridsen, a National Medal of Arts recipient named an 'American Choral Master' by the National Endowment for the Arts. Composed by Morten Lauridsen Poem by James Agee Performed by The Singers on Mid-Winter Songs Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen is a feature-length documentary and first episode of the series, In Search of The Great Song. I already knew that Lauridsen was articulate because I had interviewed him by phone several years ago about the stunningly beautiful Hyperion CD of his Lux Aeterna and other choral works. Directed by Michael Stillwater. Our first feature release, Shining Night, focusing on one ... 'In Search of the Great Song' is a documentary series exploring the song which lives in all of us. "Mesmerizing" -Thomas May, Seattle Times Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen Quotes No quotes approved yet for Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen. With Morten Lauridsen, Dana Gioia, Paul Salamunovich, Robert Geary. His music is worthy of the preceding silence because it knows that the silence is not a form of emptiness, but that it is gestational. Shining Night: Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen is an exceptional, mature look at the process and circumstances that surround the mystery of great music. | There are also wonderful scenes away from Waldron of the music being performed by various groups here and in Europe. This channel was generated automatically by YouTube's video discovery system. FAQ A National Medal of Arts recipient (2007), he was composer-in-residence of the Los Angeles Master Chorale (1994–2001) and has been a professor of composition at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music for more than 40 years. User Ratings The Uses of the Capitol Hill Riot. There is another feature about his music. I was delighted when Lauridsen asked me to sit with him during the showing. Shining Night offers a glimpse of the life and music of one of the greatest living choral composers, Morten Lauridsen, a National Medal of Arts recipient who spends summers on a remote island in the San Juan Archipelago and whom musicologist Nick Strimple distinguishes as ‘the only American composer in history who can be called a mystic’. Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen by Robert R. Reilly One of the privileges of writing this column is that I occasionally get to meet the composers of the music I review. Buy DVD Video online. Stillwater has truly created a very special film! Next. Shining Night: Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen is an exceptional, mature look at the process and circumstances that surround the mystery of great music. One of the privileges of writing this column is that I occasionally get to meet the composers of the music I review. Morten Lauridsen, the most frequently performed American choral composer, came to Washington, D.C. for the local première of the documentary film that Michael Stillwater made about him, titled Shining Night.