Paul Burnell

The second volume of Accompanied Readings is now released.  The album contains seven of fourteen accompaniments, composed by Paul Burnell, to spoken word texts published between the years 1886 and 1899.

​The scores and parts for the pieces are already available from MusicaNeo. The album is available from digital stores such as iTunes and Spotify with the CD available from CDbaby .

Track listing and programme notes is as follows:

At Dead of Night, an Accompanied Reading (2017) for ensemble and narrator. Text by Mary Elizabeth Coleridge (1861 - 1907).

Mary Elizabeth Coleridge was a British novelist and poet who also wrote essays and reviews. 'At Dead of Night' appeared in her collection of poems 'Fancy's Following' published in 1896 under the pseudonym Anodos.

I Died for Beauty, an Accompanied Reading (2015) for two or more players or singers and narrator. Text by Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886).

'I Died for Beauty' was included in the posthumous collection 'Poems' by the American poet Emily Dickinson, published in 1890. While Dickinson was a prolific private poet, fewer than a dozen of her nearly 1,800 poems were published during her lifetime.

Jonathan Harker’s Journal from ‘Dracula’ (Excerpts), an Accompanied Reading (2014) for voices and narrator. Text from ‘Dracula’ by Bram Stoker (1847 - 1912).

‘Dracula’ is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker in which the character of the vampire Count Dracula was introduced. It tells the story of Dracula's move from Transylvania to England, and of the battle between Dracula and a group led by Professor Van Helsing.

Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (Excerpt), an Accompanied Reading (2015) for percussion, vibraphone, piano and narrator. Text from 'Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde' by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850 - 1894), published 1886.

‘Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’ is a novella by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson first published in 1886. The story concerns a London lawyer who investigates disturbing occurrences between his old friend, Dr Henry Jekyll, and the evil Edward Hyde.

The Wind on the Hills, An Accompanied Reading (2015) for two bass recorders and/or two violas and narrator. Text by Dora Sigerson Shorter (1866 - 1918)

Dora Sigerson Shorter was an Irish poet and a major figure of the Irish Literary Revival, publishing many collections of poetry from 1893.’ The Wind on the Hills' appeared in her collection 'Ballads and Poems' published in 1899.

The Horla (Excerpt), an Accompanied Reading (2015) for percussion and narrator. Text from 'Le Horla' by Guy de Maupassant (1850 - 1893) published 1887, using the English translation by Jonathan Sturges (1864 - 1911) published 1890. 

Guy de Maupassant was a French writer, remembered as a master of the short story. It has been suggested that the word "horla" is a blending of the French words hors ("outside"), and là ("there") and the title can be interpreted as "the what's out there".

The Time Machine (Excerpts), an Accompanied Reading (2017) for ensemble and narrator. Text from ‘The Time Machine’ by H.G. Wells (1866 - 1946).

The Time Machine is a science fiction novel by Herbert George Wells, published in 1895. H.G. Wells is commonly credited with the popularisation of the concept of time travel - using a vehicle that allows an operator to travel intentionally and selectively backwards or forwards in time.


Paul Burnell is a London-based composer. His albums include ‘Face Each Aged Ache’ (2013), ‘Cabbage Heads’ (2013) and ‘Acute Suites’ (2017). In 2016 an album of his piano pieces was recorded by James Bacon, and ‘4 Minutes - 4 Daydreams’ was included on the London Sinfonietta album ‘Open Score’. Scores and parts for many of his compositions are available from online publishing sites.