W.B. Yeats’ iconic poem ‘The Second Coming’ depicts a nightmarish apocalyptic scenario, the text lamenting people’s increasing loss of control and tendency towards violence and anarchy. Alex Ryan’s setting of the words is nothing short of breath-taking. The composer seems to contrast the notion of the beauty of the past against the perceived ugliness of the future. The declamatory nature of the word setting is highly effective and the harmonic choices cutting and vivid. Ryan paints in sound emotions such as desolation, fury, and pathos in such a way that the text is heightened, becoming a visceral experience.

An uncompromising work with real emotional weight and appeal.