Mover of the Earth, Stopper of the Sun
# Mover of the Earth, Stopper of the Sun

Mover of the Earth, Stopper of the Sun is a concert overture for large orchestra that was commissioned by Orchestre national d'Île-de-France (ONDIF) from composer Svitlana Azarova.

The composition is dedicated to Renaissance astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus.

## Performances

* World premiere January 23, 2013 at Salle Pleyel, Paris
* Dutch premiere March 1, 2014 at Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, conducted by Marc Albrecht.
* September 17, 2015 at S. Lyudkevych Concert Hall, Lviv, INSO-Lviv Youth Academic Symphony Orchestra, conductor Anna Skryleva
* Residentie orkest was, due to COVID-19_pandemic, alas not able to perform Mover of the Earth, Stopper of the Sun for large orchestra conducted by Andrea Battistoni [it]
* 6 - 10 March, 2023 Orchestra Project 4 by the symphony orchestra of the Academy of Music and Drama at the University of Gothenburg Conductor: Henrik Schaefer

## Background

The name of this composition was taken from the Nicolaus Copernicus Monument, Toruń which bears a Latin inscription drawn up by Alexander von Humboldt: Nicolaus Copernicus Thorunensis, terrae motor, solis caelique stator - Nicolaus Copernicus of Thorun, mover of the earth, stopper of the sun and heavens

In the score Azarova graphically and musically shows Copernicus’s heliocentric cosmology which displaced the Earth from the center of the universe.

| Bar | Instruments | Object |
| - | - | - |
| 3 | Cl. | Sun |
| 19-20 | Cl., Bsn | Earth |
| 37 | Ob., Cl | Jupiter which is Copernicus' planet |
| 55 | Fl., Ob. | Mars (Conductor Enrique Mazzola's planet) |
| 56 | Horns | Saturn which is Azarova's planet, |
| 57-59 | Ob., Cl. | Jupiter |
| Copernican heliocentrism | Heliocentrism in score | Excerpt from score depicting the Sun |

## Instrumentation

Piccolo, 2 Flutes, 2 Oboes, 2 Clarinets in B♭, 2 Bassoons, 4 Horns in F, 2 Trumpets in B♭, 2 Trombones, Bass Trombone. Tuba, Timpani, Strings

Duration: ca. 5'

