Nightmare (da Füssli) (2017)

Carlotta Ferrari (b. 1975) — Nightmare (da Füssli) (2017) for organ

“Nightmare (da Füssli)” (2017) is inspired by the 1781 painting entitled “The Nightmare” by the Anglo-Swiss artist Henry Fuseli (1741–1825).

“[The painting] shows a woman in deep sleep with her arms thrown below her, in a room filled with white light, and with a demonic and apelike incubus crouched on her chest. The painting’s dream-like and haunting erotic evocation of infatuation and obsession was a huge popular success. After its first exhibition, at the 1782 Royal Academy of London, critics and patrons reacted with horrified fascination and the work became widely popular, to the extent that it was parodied in political satire, and an engraved version was widely distributed. In response, Fuseli produced at least three other versions.” (Wikipedia)

Carlotta Ferrari (b. 1975) is an Italian composer. Educated at the Conservatory in Milan, she has composed in many genres, developing a personal language that is concerned with the blend of past and present. Her compositions have been performed frequently around the world. Ferrari’s music appears on several CD recordings, including four all-Ferrari organ CDs: three recorded by Carson Cooman (2014/16) and another by Peter Clark (2015). She served as chair of music composition at Hebei Normal University in Shijiazhuang, China and is currently professor of music composition at the European School of Economics in Florence, Italy.