Introducing

A Contemporary Chamber Opera
for Young People

by Sean O'Boyle & Anne Roylance

The Song Bird is a musical story that has been designed for young people to provide them with access to the exciting and rich art-form of Opera. The Song Bird is written for 2 sopranos, baritone, and keyboard and has a running time of 45 minutes. The original production was commissioned and produced by Opera Queensland, directed by Sue Rider, with designs by Anna Ilic and first performed on 6 February, 2004 in Brisbane, Australia.

The Song Bird is a tale of danger and bravery, of heroic deeds and personal sacrifice. It is the sort of tale that keeps you on the edge of your seat! The Song Bird has had over 265 performances in it's first 2 years and has been seen by over 30,000 children. The Song Bird is not only a wonderful way to introduce children to the world of "opera", but also includes lessons on fairness, ecology, and respect for other forms of life. Moreover, it is highly portable, involving minimal costumes, sets, and props, and its score was designed for a portable electronic keyboard.

Robert Wendel Music has been assigned the publication and grand rights for this marvelous and magical work, and we are committed to making this work as accessible as possible with extremely low performance fees.

Synopsis

Never in her wildest dreams could Annabel imagine what she would find in Mr Twister's Curiosity Shop: animals everywhere, some alive and some dead. Among the animals, hidden under a dusty, dirty cover, she discovers the Song Bird, a rare and beautiful creature which is slowly dying, mourning her lost freedom. A selfish and cruel man, Mr Twister is determined to make the Song Bird sing for him, believing that great good fortune will then be his. But he hasn't reckoned on Annabel's courage and determination to help the Song Bird escape.

A poignant, engrossing tale, The Song Bird takes its audience on an emotional roller-coaster ride to an unexpected climax. Aided by an animal protection officer, Annabel wins a moral victory, but she must face the consequences of loss. Then she discovers that this very special bird has left a very precious legacy...

Click here for a study guide.

Scenes and Media from the Song Bird

Click here for an 8-minute audio synopsis.

Click here for an 8-minute video synopsis (will play with Quicktime or Real Player only), or here.

Purchase & Royalty Information:

Scores for "The Song Bird" can be purchased from Robert Wendel Music for $25 each, and comes with a DVD of part of the Australian production which can help with design of sets, props, and aid in the staging process. As always, the purchase price includes Priority Mail shipping with package tracking. Simply use our handy on-line order form which can be accessed in the links bar on the left-hand side of your screen.

Public performance of "The Song Bird" whether or not for profit, is covered by "Grand Rights" which have been assigned to Robert Wendel Music world-wide except for Australia. In an effort to make this exceptional work available to as many performing organizations and children as possible, we are keeping the performance royalties as low and flexible as possible in this tight economy. Call us for details at 212-928-9094.

All performances must be contracted ahead of time by faxing a request to 212-928-9094, or e-mail to

Meet The Authors

The Composer

Sean O'Boyle

Born in Hexham in the North of England to Irish parents, Sean O'Boyle immigrated to Australia at a young age. He now enjoys a reputation, as one of Australia's most versatile composers and conductors. Many orchestras have performed the works of Sean O'Boyle across the world, including the Dallas and Fort Worth Symphony Orchestras in the USA and the major orchestras of Australia.

Sean has a particular interest in bringing orchestral music to the very young, and a significant part of his compositional output is aimed at children. He is the Music Director for the Educational Chamber Orchestra KAZOO. In 2000 Sean was the recipient of the ABC Golden Manuscript Award for excellence in composition, won 2 award categories at the Queensland Perform Awards for the Arts and has been admitted as a Fellow in the Australian Society of Composers and Musicologists.

Librettist

Anne Roylance

Anne has been writing and producing original music theatre productions for young people for the past 20 years. Since graduating from the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, Anne has worked in both the education and arts industries and has been an advocate for the power of teaching and learning through the Arts. Anne has presented her original works at the Out of the Box International Children's Festival as well as receiving commissions from the Queensland Performing Arts Complex, The Queensland Orchestra and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra.

She has written the libretto for two chamber operas for young people. The Sound Garden (music by David Montgomery) and The Song Bird (music by Sean O'Boyle) were commissioned by Opera Queensland and written especially for a young audience. The Sound Garden has toured extensively throughout Australia being produced by the Western Australian Opera Company and the Australian Opera. Opera Queensland is currently touring The Song Bird throughout Queensland to much critical acclaim.

« Return to Top »

Thank you for visiting Robert Wendel Music!