Redbirds
for two-part equal voices & piano
Redbirds is a lyrical setting of Sara Teasdale’s poem, evoking nostalgia and wonder through a gently folk-like melody in the Mixolydian mode. The piano suggests the chirping of cardinals as the text recalls a vivid memory—sunlight, hills, and redbirds singing above the Mississippi River—ending with a touch of wistful reflection.
At a glance
- 2 equal voices • piano • c. 4’45”
- Text: Sara Teasdale
- Melodically direct; harmonically rich
- Difficulty: moderate (independent lines)
- For treble or equal-voice choirs
- Commissioned by the Organization of American Kodály Educators and premiered at OAKE’s 2022 national conference
Redbirds is now published by Colla Voce Music LLC and available here from Canticle Distributing.
SKU: SWM-021
Categories: Children's Choir, Choral Music
| Descriptive Tags: | Birds, Memory, Nostalgia, PROJECT : ENCORE, River, Time |
| Duration: | 1-5 Minutes |
| Language: | English |
| Sacred or Secular: | Secular |
| Voicing: | Equal Voices |
| Difficulty: | Medium |
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Title | View | Voicing | Duration | Language | Composer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| TTBB | 3'15" | English | When I first discovered Charles Bernstein’s beautiful poem, I knew immediately that I wanted to set it for men’s chorus. The poem expresses so much within a brief, 4-verse form. I set out to use harmony to color the text’s rich imagery while honoring the poem’s lyrical and repetitive nature in the melody. The surprising […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| When I first discovered Charles Bernstein’s beautiful poem, I knew immediately that I wanted to set it for men’s chorus. The poem expresses so much within a brief, 4-verse form. I set out to use harmony to color the text’s rich imagery while honoring the poem’s lyrical and repetitive nature in the melody. The surprising […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SATB | 2' 10" | Latin | This communion motet, setting the famous 14th century words attributed to Innocent VI, took the prize in the Composition Competition of The Wessex Festival in August 2016. It has since been sung in venues including Ripon Cathedral, UK. Set largely homophonically for SATB choir without divisions, its well-structured melody is complemented by the texture created […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This communion motet, setting the famous 14th century words attributed to Innocent VI, took the prize in the Composition Competition of The Wessex Festival in August 2016. It has since been sung in venues including Ripon Cathedral, UK. Set largely homophonically for SATB choir without divisions, its well-structured melody is complemented by the texture created […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SATB ⋅ SSATBB | 4'30" | English | This work was commissioned by the Jane Froman Singers of Columbia College, Columbia, Missouri, under the direction of Nollie Moore. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This work was commissioned by the Jane Froman Singers of Columbia College, Columbia, Missouri, under the direction of Nollie Moore. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SATB | 3'35" | English | The text of “In Those Years, No One Slept” is a scene from a time of conflict/war, by Romanian-American immigrant Claudia Serea. The score is at once rhythmic and exciting, haunting and unsettling. It was a winner of the 2018 Uncommon Music Festival Composition Competition. It is accessible for all fine high school, collegiate and […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The text of “In Those Years, No One Slept” is a scene from a time of conflict/war, by Romanian-American immigrant Claudia Serea. The score is at once rhythmic and exciting, haunting and unsettling. It was a winner of the 2018 Uncommon Music Festival Composition Competition. It is accessible for all fine high school, collegiate and […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SSAA | 3' | English | This inspirational piece for treble voices begins and ends with a canon. Originally written for a high school girl’s choir, it is appropriate for younger singers as well as professionals. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This inspirational piece for treble voices begins and ends with a canon. Originally written for a high school girl’s choir, it is appropriate for younger singers as well as professionals. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SATB | 2'20" | English ⋅ Latin | A lovely setting of the well-known communion prayer by Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), this version has the choir sing both the original Latin and later in English translation. This anthem is indicative of my compositional style, including rapidly shifting harmonic centers. However, it is very approachable for both the singers and listeners, employing simple four-part harmonies […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A lovely setting of the well-known communion prayer by Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), this version has the choir sing both the original Latin and later in English translation. This anthem is indicative of my compositional style, including rapidly shifting harmonic centers. However, it is very approachable for both the singers and listeners, employing simple four-part harmonies […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SSAA | 2'30" | English | This sweet and gentle setting of a classic Southern Harmony hymn features the Alto section in its first verse, then opens out into a joyful depiction of the sensation of flight. The second verse features birdcalls in the piano accompaniment. Recording by First Readings Project. This recording is of the SATB version of the piece, […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This sweet and gentle setting of a classic Southern Harmony hymn features the Alto section in its first verse, then opens out into a joyful depiction of the sensation of flight. The second verse features birdcalls in the piano accompaniment. Recording by First Readings Project. This recording is of the SATB version of the piece, […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SSA | 6'30" | English | To Blossoms To Daffodils Gather ye Rosebuds All three of these poems are by the Seventeenth Century English lyric poet, Robert Herrick (1591-1674). While flowers are referred to in each of them, their main common theme is time – in particular the briefness of our lives here on this earth, and the need to use […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| To Blossoms To Daffodils Gather ye Rosebuds All three of these poems are by the Seventeenth Century English lyric poet, Robert Herrick (1591-1674). While flowers are referred to in each of them, their main common theme is time – in particular the briefness of our lives here on this earth, and the need to use […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SA ⋅ SATB | 4'40" | English | This carol originated in the city of Wexford in the southeastern Republic of Ireland. It was transcribed from a local singer by the noted Irish author, composer, musicologist, and historian W. H. Grattan Flood (1859–1928). It eventually made its way into the Oxford Book of Carols. It has a modal (Mixolydian) feel, constantly shifting between […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This carol originated in the city of Wexford in the southeastern Republic of Ireland. It was transcribed from a local singer by the noted Irish author, composer, musicologist, and historian W. H. Grattan Flood (1859–1928). It eventually made its way into the Oxford Book of Carols. It has a modal (Mixolydian) feel, constantly shifting between […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||