The Beauty That Still Remains

The Beauty That Still Remains is a full-length choral work by Norwegian composer Marcus Paus, that is based on The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, and has received critical acclaim.[1][2][3] It was commissioned by the Government of Norway for the official Norwegian 70th anniversary of the end of the Second World War in 2015, and written for the Norwegian Girls' Choir, historically the girl's choir of the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation; it premiered in 2015 in the Atrium of the University of Oslo (where the Nobel Peace Prize was formerly awarded), and the premiere was opened by Minister of Defence Ine Marie Eriksen Søreide.[4][5][6][7]

The Beauty That Still Remains
by Marcus Paus
Genrechoral composition
TextAnne Frank
LanguageEnglish/Norwegian
Composed2015

The libretto is written by Paus based on Frank's diary and includes edited parts of it. The title of the work is based on a quote by Anne Frank:

At such moments I don't think about all the misery, but about the beauty that still remains. This is where Mother and I differ greatly. Her advice in the face of melancholy is: "Think about all the suffering in the world and be thankful you're not part of it." My advice is: "Go outside, to the country, enjoy the sun and all nature has to offer. Go outside and try to recapture the happiness within yourself; think of all the beauty in yourself and in everything around you and be happy.

— Anne Frank, "The Diary of a Young Girl"[8]

Album

In 2020 the studio album The Beauty That Still Remains by the Norwegian Girls Choir was released by 2L; it includes Paus' eponymous work as well as Maja Ratkje's avant-garde choral work Asylos.[9][2][3] Music critic Ola Nordal described the work as "a masterpiece."[1] Dominy Clements noted that the album is "filled with intriguing juxtapositions, with children’s songs and games rubbing shoulders with Gregorian chant, spoken word and beautiful singing and all kinds of theatrical scenes being created and as quickly dissolved into jaw-dropping moments of unexpected stylistic and musical counterpoint."[2]

References
  1. Ola Nordal (26 March 2020), "Sepiatoner og sanglek", Ballade
  2. Dominy Clements (2020): "Marcus PAUS (b. 1979): The Beauty That Still Remains (2015, text by Anne Frank)" (review), Musicweb
  3. "The Norwegian Girl Choir – The Beauty That Still Remains - Blu-ray Auro 3D and Dolby Atmos surround release" (review), HiRes Edition
  4. "– Musikk uten melodikk er som et språk uten adjektiver," Aftenposten
  5. The beauty that still remains – konsert med Det Norske Jentekor, Aktiv i Oslo
  6. "UiO markerer 70-årsjubileet for frigjeringa i Aulaen," Uniforum
  7. "Slik feires fredsdagen," Dagsavisen
  8. Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl (p. 211), Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2010, ISBN 9780307776204
  9. The Beauty That Still Remains
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