SKU: PR.312418770

ISBN 9781491138120. UPC: 680160640195. Second April, by Edna St. Vincent Millay.

Second April for S.A.T.B. Chorus and Piano is a four-movement set, based on the poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay. Ewazen has long been enamored with her poetry's wonderfully vivid and descriptive imagery of nature and emotions, and its powerful and profound meaning. The first movement, SONG OF A SECOND APRIL is dramatic, detailing a time of personal strife and tragedy, perhaps the end of a relationship or even the end of a life. The music is intense, fast, in a minor key, creating a feeling of powerful, relentless emotions. Little by little, the music almost dies away, getting quieter and quieter, creating a feeling of resignation, but with a surprise Picardy Third in the final chord – suggesting a bit of hope!.
SECOND APRIL for S.A.T.B. Chorus and Piano is a four-movement set, based on the poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay. I have long been enamored with the poetry of Millay for its wonderfully vivid and descriptive imagery, and its often powerful and profound meaning. Millay’s descriptions of nature, and of feelings and emotions, have always spoken to me. SECOND APRIL consists of four of her poems, each with a distinctive mood, message, and emotional feel. They are vivid, powerful, and beautiful, inspiring me to capture these descriptions of the various scenes she portrays.  Song of a Second April uses music to underlie strong feelings, passions, and the tragedies of life. The poem itself is dramatic, detailing a time of personal strife and tragedy, perhaps the end of a relationship or even the end of a life. The music is intense, fast, in a minor key, and with rapid, spinning notes creating a feeling of powerful, relentless emotions. Melodies, motives, and gestures are tossed between the voices, increasing the feelings of intensity and even desperation. Little by little, the music almost dies away, getting quieter and quieter, creating a feeling of resignation, but with a Picardy Third in the final chord – maybe a bit of hope!  Mariposa is a celebration of nature, wandering through a field with white and blue butterflies appearing almost wondrously. But there’s also a profound feeling of poignancy, noting that as one relishes such a beautiful, magical sight, they should embrace the experience – the fleeting, transient nature of such a perfect vision and of life itself. The music portrays the flying of the butterflies: gentle, beautiful, with rich chords and arpeggios, but stepping back, as the fleeting nature of life is the reality, with gentle, but sombre chords interspersed with the magical flight of the Mariposa.Alms is a fast rondo, intense, bold, and always dance-like. It is about both tragedy and resilience. This music is also in minor, yet with moments of playfulness, as a recollection of happy times or moments takes over. This seesaw between emotions is heard throughout the movement, as the music continues to “dance.”  And with Millay’s summing up of “reality being what it is,” the piece ends with strength, boldness, and finality. Into the Golden Vessel of Great Song is an appassionato call to overcome! The poem exhorts us to “sing out” with hope, determination, and strength. The music is full of bright and lilting energy; but as the turmoil and times of strife people can sometimes feel or experience, the music becomes intense, dramatic, in a minor key, and with changing rhythms. BUT, there is a return to championing the idea of simply overcoming, going forward with hope and determination, and the music is in major, resonant and strong.  .

SKU: PR.312418790

ISBN 9781491138144. UPC: 680160640218. Second April, by Edna St. Vincent Millay.

Second April for S.A.T.B. Chorus and Piano is a four-movement set, based on the poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay. Ewazen has long been enamored with her poetry's wonderfully vivid and descriptive imagery of nature and emotions, and its powerful and profound meaning. The third movement, ALMS is a fast rondo, intense, bold, and always dance-like. It is about both tragedy and resilience. This music is primarily minor, yet with moments of playfulness, the recollection of happy times takes over. This seesaw between emotions is heard throughout the movement, and with Millay’s summing up of “reality being what it is,” the piece ends with strength, boldness, and finality. .
Program Notes by Eric EwazenSECOND APRIL for S.A.T.B. Chorus and Piano is a four-movement set, based on the poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay. I have long been enamored with the poetry of Millay for its wonderfully vivid and descriptive imagery, and its often powerful and profound meaning. Millay’s descriptions of nature, and of feelings and emotions, have always spoken to me. SECOND APRIL consists of four of her poems, each with a distinctive mood, message, and emotional feel. They are vivid, powerful, and beautiful, inspiring me to capture these descriptions of the various scenes she portrays.  Song of a Second April uses music to underlie strong feelings, passions, and the tragedies of life. The poem itself is dramatic, detailing a time of personal strife and tragedy, perhaps the end of a relationship or even the end of a life. The music is intense, fast, in a minor key, and with rapid, spinning notes creating a feeling of powerful, relentless emotions. Melodies, motives, and gestures are tossed between the voices, increasing the feelings of intensity and even desperation. Little by little, the music almost dies away, getting quieter and quieter, creating a feeling of resignation, but with a Picardy Third in the final chord – maybe a bit of hope!  Mariposa is a celebration of nature, wandering through a field with white and blue butterflies appearing almost wondrously. But there’s also a profound feeling of poignancy, noting that as one relishes such a beautiful, magical sight, they should embrace the experience – the fleeting, transient nature of such a perfect vision and of life itself. The music portrays the flying of the butterflies: gentle, beautiful, with rich chords and arpeggios, but stepping back, as the fleeting nature of life is the reality, with gentle, but sombre chords interspersed with the magical flight of the Mariposa.Alms is a fast rondo, intense, bold, and always dance-like. It is about both tragedy and resilience. This music is also in minor, yet with moments of playfulness, as a recollection of happy times or moments takes over. This seesaw between emotions is heard throughout the movement, as the music continues to “dance.”  And with Millay’s summing up of “reality being what it is,” the piece ends with strength, boldness, and finality. Into the Golden Vessel of Great Song is an appassionato call to overcome! The poem exhorts us to “sing out” with hope, determination, and strength. The music is full of bright and lilting energy; but as the turmoil and times of strife people can sometimes feel or experience, the music becomes intense, dramatic, in a minor key, and with changing rhythms. BUT, there is a return to championing the idea of simply overcoming, going forward with hope and determination, and the music is in major, resonant and strong.  .

SKU: PR.312418710

ISBN 9781598066265. UPC: 680160618743. Octavo inches. The Devil's Verse.

To celebrate 25 years of excellence and promotion of new concert works, the New York Virtuoso Singers commissioned 25 contemporary composers for 25 new choral works, all of which now appear on their recording, 25 X 25: Twenty-Five Premieres for Twenty-Five Years. Among the 25 is Richard Wernick's The Devil's Game. Here, Wernick uses The Devil's Verse, a Latin palindrome that still puzzles us today as to its meaning, and appropriately embraces repetitive use of the verse in a musical palindrome of his own.
The text is a palindrome (in girum imus nocte et consumimur igni), a rather mysterious one called The Devil’s Verse. Its origin is vague (probably Roman, but possibly Medieval) and it does not surrender its meaning easily; many scholars have fussed over it. It is a riddle as well as a palindrome, in other words a puzzle within a puzzle. My preferred translation, without going into the niceties of Latin grammar, is “We enter the circle at night and are consumed by fire.”This music is also a palindrome, the outer parts of which are homophonic, while the turning around point in the center (where the basses enter for the first time) is a brief double canon.