Full Fathom Five
12 performance rounds from Shakespeare to Synge
by Brian Kogler
The sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in Britain form a golden age of round-singing; even the nineteenth provided some fine examples. These twelve rounds, set to texts by Shakespeare, Skelton, Swift, Dryden, Johnson, Carroll and Synge, are of varying difficulty and may require rehearsal. Keeping as they do to the style of the period, they offer plenty of movement among the parts. Some have special endings for performance. While intended for experienced voices, they may of course be sung by mixed groups of all ages. The composer explains the concept of “partnered voices” in gaining melodic range.
Over 100 of Brian Kogler’s rounds are now accessible on YouTube. Scores are available for free on request. Please contact: bkogler [at] bigpond [dot] com
SKU: BKR-008
Categories: Children's Choir, Choral Music, Lower Voices, Mixed Voices, Treble Voices
Instrumentation: Choral
| Voicing: | Equal Voices, SSAA |
| Instrumentation: | A Cappella |
| Language: | English |
| Sacred or Secular: | Secular |
| Season or Event: | General |
| Difficulty: | Intermediate, Advanced |
| Descriptive Tags: | Fun, Humorous, Light, Rounds, Silly |
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Title | View | Voicing | Duration | Language | Composer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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SATB | 3'20" | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
“Entrance” is a new choral composition for SATB choir w/piano accompaniment. The inspiring, secular text is by Dana Gioia, former US poet laureate. It invites the listener to find new discoveries, new creations: “step out…. of the room that lets you feel secure. / Infinity is open to your sight.” With a jazz-influenced, uptempo piano […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Equal Voices ⋅ SSAA | Each round 1′30″ to 2′ (in performance) | English ⋅ Latin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The clear, rinsed sound of Women’s voices is hardly more thrilling than in the recital of rounds. And when the rounds offer plenty of movement among the parts, as do most in this collection, the effect can be delightful. These twelve rounds, set largely to medieval texts, are of varying difficulty and may require rehearsal. […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB | 2'25" | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Troparion of Christmas from the Byzantine liturgy contemplates how the Star of Bethlehem led the star-worshiping Magi to worship Christ, the true Sun of Righteousness. More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB | 4' | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB | 1' 41" | Latin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This lovely setting of St Thomas Aquinas’s famous Corpus Christi text will be useful all year round for church choirs which like to perform unaccompanied motets during the administration of Holy Communion. With its independently moving parts, gentle chromaticism and slow, lilting 5/4 metre, it is a calming evocation of the mystery of the sacrament. […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SSA | 2' | Hebrew | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Composed in the summer of 2020, Psalm 117 is a fun and uplifting setting of this psalm (“Praise the Lord, all nations!”) sung in Hebrew (IPA pronunciation guide included). The recording here is an electronic demo. More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TB ⋅ TBB ⋅ TTB ⋅ TTBB | 5' | English ⋅ Hebrew | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SSAA | 4' | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A close-harmony setting for SSAA chorus, piano, and bass of Shakespeare’s lovely invitation to music from King Lear (Act V, Scene 1). Shakespeare and jazz — together again! More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
for SATB a cappella with divisi and boy soprano obligato ROM-9601 | 4' 45" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
From an Oregon Bach Festival concert review by Tom Manoff, in the (Eugene, Oregon) Register-Guard , July 11, 2002: “Rebecca Oswald is not a showy composer, but she’s an honorable one. ‘The Soul Contemplates the Creator In the Creation’ is splendid choral writing. This unpretentious style isn’t calculated to impress the trendy set, but in […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB | 4' 23" | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A setting for unaccompanied SATB choir (with divisi) of words by Eric Gosney, a poet from England’s Isle of Purbeck. A wistful and nostalgic love song, in which the poet wishes to “thwart old Time’s irrevocable plan and live again those two short hours with you”. These evocative words are set with suitably tender harmonies […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||