The diverse nature of the landscape and environment of the Isle of Man has inspired a local composer to create a new suite of classical music.

Tim Price will premier ’Gem Of God’s Earth’, his major new orchestral suite of music inspired by the elements of the natural features that he feels makes the island such a special place to live.

Taking the title from the first line of the Manx national anthem, Tim created ’Gem of God’s Earth’, an hour’s worth of contemporary classical music consisting of seven different movements, during the quiet period of the lock down, earlier this year.

Like many involved in the creative industries, Tim found that many projects that he was involved in were abruptly cancelled.

One positive of this was that he found he was able to spend his new-found abundance of time on personal projects, which led him to complete his Manx-themed opus.

"As a composer, I have often found inspiration in the Manx landscape, said Tim.

’I’ve been working on sketches for this piece for a few years, but 2020 has given me a great chance to actually get it finished!

’The places and features I have chosen for the seven movements represent some of the natural variety that is packed into this small island.

’I’ve tried to use a rich instrumental and harmonic palette to create a piece that depicts something of the beauty, diversity, and atmosphere of these natural features.’

The creation and recording of ’Gem of God’s Earth has been backed by the Isle of Man Arts Council Covid-19 Resilience Fund.

However, due to the restrictions surrounding travel and budget, Tim was unable to use a full orchestra and decided instead to use a virtual orchestra instead.

’As a self employed recording engineer, the lockdown meant that all the jobs I had lined up were cancelled, so this support from the Isle of Man Arts Council has been a great help for those like me in the creative industries,’ he said.

’I’m hoping that some day the piece will be performed by a live orchestra, as nothing really beats that for the quality of expression, but this sounds pretty close.’

The music will be released on CD and also through Tim’s YouTube channel on Monday, November 2 as a cinematic release, complete with photographs and videos, remaining available to view until Sunday, November 8.

There will also be a screening at Ramsey Independent Methodist Church in Chapel Lane, Ramsey on Tuesday, November 3, at 7pm, along with a photographic exhibition, held in the gallery at Rachel Price Photography, 4 Bourne Place, Ramsey, from Monday, November 9.

The CD will be available from local shops including from Rachel Price Photography in Ramsey, the Lexicon Bookshop in Douglas, and the Bridge Bookshops in Port Erin and Ramsey, as well as through tim-price-music.bandcamp.com