To Make a Prairie
Emily Dickinson’s short and quippy poem, “To make a prairie” has a great depth of meaning despite its brevity, in its portrayal of the power of imagination. This setting captures the broad sweep of the prairie landscape in its bright opening chords, and the dreamy state of imagnining in a shimmering but intensifying middle section, then trails off in hazy tone clusters with the buzzing of bees.
| Descriptive Tags: | American, Dream, Flowers, Imagination, Inspiration, Nature, Poetry |
| Difficulty: | Medium |
| Duration: | 1-5 Minutes |
| Instrumentation: | Piano |
| Language: | English |
| Sacred or Secular: | Secular |
| Voicing: | SATB |
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| SATB | 3'20" | Italian | Tre Madrigali Amorosi are settings of poems by Torquato Tasso (1544-1595), a favorite poet of Italian madrigal composers of the sixteenth century. The set was written for the Saint Mary’s University Chamber Singers, who premiered the works on their tour of France in March, 2013, with the composer conducting and Chun Chim (David) Leung, violin. […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tre Madrigali Amorosi are settings of poems by Torquato Tasso (1544-1595), a favorite poet of Italian madrigal composers of the sixteenth century. The set was written for the Saint Mary’s University Chamber Singers, who premiered the works on their tour of France in March, 2013, with the composer conducting and Chun Chim (David) Leung, violin. […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SATB ⋅ SSAATTB | 25' | English | A lyrical meditation on friendship and loss, Cycle of Friends is a concert centerpiece with texts ranging from Sappho and Emily Dickinson to Tang-dynasty China and pre-Columbian Mexico. A soprano soloist serves as an intimate narrator, while the orchestra supplies vivid, transparent color around lyrical choral writing. Completed and premiered in 1996, a newly revised […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A lyrical meditation on friendship and loss, Cycle of Friends is a concert centerpiece with texts ranging from Sappho and Emily Dickinson to Tang-dynasty China and pre-Columbian Mexico. A soprano soloist serves as an intimate narrator, while the orchestra supplies vivid, transparent color around lyrical choral writing. Completed and premiered in 1996, a newly revised […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SATB | 5'45" | English | This delightful piece sets a whimsical poem by the American poet, Susan Kinsolving, about steps taken internationally to make the world a better place. Sanford Dole’s Dance Steps has artistic merit…no one can doubt the artistic merit of Dole’s entertaining piece. I was not looking forward to enduring Susan Kinsolving’s absurdist text, printed in the […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This delightful piece sets a whimsical poem by the American poet, Susan Kinsolving, about steps taken internationally to make the world a better place. Sanford Dole’s Dance Steps has artistic merit…no one can doubt the artistic merit of Dole’s entertaining piece. I was not looking forward to enduring Susan Kinsolving’s absurdist text, printed in the […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAB | 3'30" | English | 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 […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 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 […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SATB ⋅ SSATBB | 7' | English | This setting of Charles Baudelaire’s iconic poem captures the “luxury” and “voluptuousness” of Edna St. Vincent Millay’s radiant translation. The six-part texture allows for thick, evocative chords in Dole’s jazz-influenced harmonic world. Slowly evolving chord progressions paint a picture of a person truly in love with another, asking that they go on a long journey […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This setting of Charles Baudelaire’s iconic poem captures the “luxury” and “voluptuousness” of Edna St. Vincent Millay’s radiant translation. The six-part texture allows for thick, evocative chords in Dole’s jazz-influenced harmonic world. Slowly evolving chord progressions paint a picture of a person truly in love with another, asking that they go on a long journey […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SSA | 4' | English ⋅ Latin | JUSTITIAE DOMINI RECTAE (SSA) is based on the original Gregorian chant sung as an offertory on the Third Sunday of Lent. The Latin text is based on verses from Psalm 19 (18 in the Latin Vulgate): The laws of God are just, rejoicing the heart, sweeter than honey or the honeycomb; therefore your servant will observe them. […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| JUSTITIAE DOMINI RECTAE (SSA) is based on the original Gregorian chant sung as an offertory on the Third Sunday of Lent. The Latin text is based on verses from Psalm 19 (18 in the Latin Vulgate): The laws of God are just, rejoicing the heart, sweeter than honey or the honeycomb; therefore your servant will observe them. […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAB | 2' | Other | KONIKONECO (3-Part Mixed chorus) is a traditional call-and-response song of the Teso people, who live in eastern Uganda and in western Kenya. The lyrics, from the Ateso language combined with borrowings from other languages and dialects, roughly translates as “Let us celebrate our schools, our learning, and our empowerment.” The piano accompaniment suggests the arpeggios […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| KONIKONECO (3-Part Mixed chorus) is a traditional call-and-response song of the Teso people, who live in eastern Uganda and in western Kenya. The lyrics, from the Ateso language combined with borrowings from other languages and dialects, roughly translates as “Let us celebrate our schools, our learning, and our empowerment.” The piano accompaniment suggests the arpeggios […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 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 […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 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 […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SATB | 3' 25" | English | This heartfelt folksong was written by Newfoundlander Jim Payne (b. 1955) in 1994, and appeared as the title song for the Album “Wave Over Wave: Old and New Songs of Atlantic Canada,” with Fergus O’Byrne (1996). The song was also very successfully recorded by the Newfoundland folk rock band Great Big Sea, which released it […] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This heartfelt folksong was written by Newfoundlander Jim Payne (b. 1955) in 1994, and appeared as the title song for the Album “Wave Over Wave: Old and New Songs of Atlantic Canada,” with Fergus O’Byrne (1996). The song was also very successfully recorded by the Newfoundland folk rock band Great Big Sea, which released it […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 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 […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||