I Saw a Peacock with a Fiery Tail

for double choir

A 17th-century riddle poem, “I Saw a Peacock With a Fiery Tail” at first seems fantastical: A peacock with a fiery tail! I saw a comet drop down hail! Full of evocative text painting, this choral setting reveals the sense of the poem by dividing each line between the two choirs and then reordering the text. A comet with a fiery tail! I saw a cloud drop down hail! The music allows for this reordering by ending each phrase with a tendency chord that can be resolved in two ways. The piece returns to the magical imagery in an antiphonal setting for double choir at the end.

“I Saw a Peacock With a Fiery Tail” was premiered in St. Paul, Minnesota in 2013 by VocalEssence with Philip Brunelle conducting.

SKU: CME-003 Categories: Choral Music, Mixed Voices Instrumentation: Choral

Season or Event:	General
Descriptive Tags:	Celebratory, Fun, Humorous, Nature, Poetry, PROJECT : ENCORE, Silly
Difficulty:	Advanced Student, Advanced, Very Advanced
Sacred or Secular:	Secular
Language:	English
Voicing:	SATB, SATB+SATB
Instrumentation:	A Cappella
Duration:	1-5 Minutes

$5.95

This title is available in print or for immediate download. For both options, there is a minimum required quantity of 8 copies for choral titles. Please support self-publishing composers by ordering the quantity according to the number of singers in the ensemble that will perform the work.

Print orders are printed on demand and shipped by our printing partner, and can be expected to be processed within a few days of the order. Please do not hesitate to contact [email protected] to follow up.

Choose Format

Clear

Quantity

Explore More Music…

	Title	Voicing	Duration	Language	Composer
	21st Century 23rd Psalm for mixed choir and piano JBN-020	SATB	3'50"	English	Bernstein, Jeffrey	Info/Listen/Buy »

	A Clear Midnight for SATB choir and piano RCL-011	SATB	4'20"	English	Campbell, Rich	Info/Listen/Buy »
A setting of the brief yet powerful poem by Walt Whitman (from “Leaves of Grass”). The score takes its cue from the meditative nature of the text. There is a contemplative tone throughout, laced with subtle harmonies and perhaps inspired by the works of Randall Thompson. The score quietly expresses the expansive feeling one gets […]
	Among The Trees Three songs for SATB Choir and piano WCL-001	SATB	14'	English	Campbell, William	Info/Listen/Buy »
Among The Trees The Clearing Rests In Song and Shade I Go Among the Trees and Sit Still All the Earth Shall Sing (The dark around us, come) Three Songs for SATB Choir & Piano Words by Wendell Berry These three songs are about finding peace and unity within nature. Balance comes to many of […]
	Ave Maria for SATB chorus a cappella SDE-001	SATB	1'40"	Latin	Dole, Sanford	Info/Listen/Buy »
Sanford Dole’s Ave Maria is a harmonized setting of the Gregorian chant antiphon. The soprano part is a metrical version of the Gregorian chant melody. The other parts create a harmonic world that is uniquely Dole’s; what his choirs refer to as the “Dolian mode.”
	Await Light for mixed choir and piano JBN-023	SATB	4'25"	English	Bernstein, Jeffrey	Info/Listen/Buy »

	Bright was the Star for mixed choir and keyboard GTT-010	SATB	4'	English	Thornett, Gordon	Info/Listen/Buy »
This simple Christmas setting resulted from an international collaboration between Brian Holmes of California and Gordon Thornett from the UK. Brian’s poem has been set for mixed voices (SATB) and piano (or organ). The piece describes how the cold of winter is turned into spring by the coming of the Christ Child. Bright was the […]
	Frè Timoniè (TTB version) for TTB choir with piano and optional percussion SPN-004	TTB	3'	French	Paxton, Steven	Info/Listen/Buy »
This traditional folk song from Haiti originated as a work song, sung by boatmen in order keep their rowing strokes in sync. The language is Haitian Creole, similar in pronunciation to French, but easier (no silent letters!). Piano accompaniment with simple optional drum. Also available in a version for SAB chorus.
	How Can I Keep from Singing SATB choir with piano SPN-007	SATB	3'30"	English	Paxton, Steven	Info/Listen/Buy »
The text for How Can I Keep from Singing was written by members of the Derventio Choir of Allestree, Derbyshire, England, and Steven Paxton’s setting was composed for the competition celebrating that choir’s 30th anniversary. Moderate tempo a cappella sections alternate with fast, rhythmically driving sections mixing 6/8 and 5/8 meters. The piano accompaniment is […]
	Jane, Do Be Careful 13 performance rounds for young partnered voices BKR-003	Equal Voices ⋅ SSAA	Each round 1′30″ to 2′ (in performance)	English	Kogler, Brian	Info/Listen/Buy »
The round is the first tool of any music teacher wishing to develop in children an ability to listen to others while holding an independent line. Rounds also build cohesion among singers, providing opportunities to improve ensemble, sight-reading, articulation and breathing. Here are thirteen original rounds of varying difficulty for Youth Choir: while intended for […]
	Psalm of the Sky SSA for SSA chorus, piano, and violin SRD-004b	SA ⋅ SAA ⋅ SSA ⋅ SSAA	5'	English ⋅ Hebrew	Riskind, Sarah	Info/Listen/Buy »
In the poem “Psalm of the Sky,” Rabbi Rachel Barenblat reimagines “The Lord is My Shepherd” (Psalm 23) in a contemporary context. Performers may highlight the many instances of text painting and create contrast between moments of gentleness, boldness, and carefree movement. The last verse of Psalm 23 is included in Hebrew as a coda […]