Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen
Michael Stillwater
74 mins | 2012
This fascinating film offers a glimpse into the life and music of Morten Lauridsen, an artist considered to be one of the greatest living choral composers and certainly one of the most frequently performed.
Sponsored by:
Friday Harbor Suites
Lauridsen is a recipient of the National Medal of Arts and was also named an 'American Choral Master' by the National Endowment for the Arts. The film features intimate interviews with him in California, Scotland, and Waldron Island (in the San Juans), interwoven with performances of his masterworks in America and Scotland and commentaries by music contemporaries. It gives the viewer a rare opportunity to spend a little time with this extraordinary man, who has derived his inspiration from the natural world. As Lauridsen has observed, “You can hear that its serenity, calmness, and beauty have crept into my music.” “Life is a mystery. There is something bigger than us out there. And how do we tap into that? You go down deep.”
Shining Night, the first of a Song Without Borders trilogy, weaves interviews (with poet and former National Endowment for the Arts chairman Dana Gioia, conductor Robert Geary, composer/conductor Paul Mealor, conductor Paul Salamunovich, and local composer Alex Shapiro) with both live and recorded performances by a variety of choral groups (including Volti, Polyphony, the Dale Warland Singers, and the San Francisco Choral Society).
Lauridsen currently lives on San Juan Island. Prior to moving here, he spent many summers on Waldron, which is where he composed what Brett Campbell (who writes about music for The Wall Street Journal, Willamette Week, Oregon Arts Watch, San Francisco Classical Voice, and many other publications) has characterized as “some of the most poignant choral music of the last century.” Working out of two rustic cabins on Waldron, neither of which had running water or electricity, Lauridsen composed much of his music on a battered old piano that cost him $50, by light from candles and kerosene lanterns.
Michael Stillwater
Michael Stillwater is an innovator with music, words, and images. An award-winning songwriter, recording artist, and filmmaker, he provides artistic and transformative reflection upon core societal issues, catalyzing creative expression in people of all ages.
Stillwater’s interfaith chants and healing songs are enjoyed in singing circles, gatherings, churches, and communities worldwide, with multiple recordings by other artists as well as himself.
An interfaith minister through the Chaplaincy Institute, he ministered through Heavensong, a non-denominational church based in California and Hawaii, from 1978 through 1990.
Through Song Without Borders, the nonprofit creative arts agency he co-founded, Stillwater produced films and other programs applying song to personal and societal transformation.
He created his first film, Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen (2012) together with his wife, Doris Laesser Stillwater. Acclaimed ‘a heartening rarity’ by the Wall Street Journal, the film received four Best Documentary awards at US film festivals and enthusiastic response from a global audience, including Europe and South Africa. The movie tells the story of the life and music of National Medal of Arts recipient Morten Lauridsen, recognized as the most performed choral composer of recent times.
CREDITS
Director
Michael Stillwater
Producer
Michael Stillwater
Composer
Morten Lauridsen
Cinematographer
Michael Stillwater
Editor
Michael Stillwater
MORE ON FILMMAKER MICHAEL STILLWATER
The Stillwater’s second film, In Search of the Great Song: Fifty Voices. Twelve countries. One question. (2016), received two Best Documentary awards, including at its US Premiere, Moondance Int’l Film Festival in Boulder, CO. Providing an existential and metaphorical context, the film serves as a conversation starter for exploring our inherent creativity and essential spiritual unity. With interviews recorded worldwide, including at the 2009 Parliament of the World’s Religions in Melbourne, the film was screened at the Parliaments in both Salt Lake City (2015) and Toronto (2018).
Their third film, Beyond the Fear of Singing: Unlock Your Voice, Release Your Song (2019), winner of three film festival awards, focuses on the inhibition so many feel about their singing voice, together with healing pathways for overcoming limitations and the rewarding discovery of expressing one’s voice.
Stillwater’s unique intuitive recording artistry provides a way for people to feel seen and supported at an essential level. His intuitive song portraits demonstrate empathic connection, while Song Sanctuary seminars and retreats combine a variety of interactive elements in a one-day, two-day, or longer program. SongLife Training seminars, both local and online, provide anyone with a forum for unlocking their musical aspirations individually or with others.
Online he offers Personal Songportraits, the Honoring Ceremony, Private Instruction Sessions, and SongLife Training.
With Emmy-award-winning film composer Gary Malkin and Swiss psychotherapist Doris Laesser Stillwater, he co-authored Graceful Passages: A Companion for Living and Dying (over one million listeners/readers), and Care for the Journey: Messages and Music for Sustaining the Heart of Healthcare, created for reducing stress in healthcare and palliative care practitioners.
Together with his wife Doris he leads Song Sanctuary Retreats in Europe and America, providing support through contemplative, creative, and personal growth practice. A resident of Europe since 2005, he now lives in the Alps of Switzerland and travels frequently, offering online and local musical programs and creative educational programs worldwide.