SKU: CF.CM9706

ISBN 9781491160022. UPC: 680160918621. Key: D minor. English. Sara Teasdale, adapted by Meredith Tompkins.

Sara Teasdale was a celebrated American poet who lived at the turn of the twentieth century, known for her classical style and pure, openhearted writing. At the young age of twenty-three, she became a published author and went on to release a total of eight award-winning collections of poetry in her lifetime. Love-Free is a reflective poem that appears in Part I of Rivers to the Sea, published in 1915. In the text, the narrator experiences a range of emotions centering around lost love and the desire to either separate from or rekindle it. Reminiscent of an antique music box, the text is paired with a waltz-like accompaniment in a lilting 3/4 pattern. Melodic exploration of the natural minor scale is achieved through mostly step-wise motion and some carefully placed, text-painted leaps ranging from a minor third to a sixth. With some unison, SA, and SSA sections, this piece can show off the wide array of colors and textures available to treble choirs.
Sara Teasdale was a celebrated American poet who lived at the turn of the twentieth century, known for her classical style and pure, openhearted writing. At the young age of twenty-three, she became a published author and went on to release a total of eight award-winning collections of poetry in her lifetime. Love-Free is a reflective poem that appears in Part I of Rivers to the Sea, published in 1915. In the text, the narrator experiences a range of emotions centering around lost love and the desire to either separate from or rekindle it. Reminiscent of an antique music box, the text is paired with a waltz-like accompaniment in a lilting 3/4 pattern. Melodic exploration of the natural minor scale is achieved through mostly step-wise motion and some carefully placed, text-painted leaps ranging from a minor third to a sixth. With some unison, SA, and SSA sections, this piece can show off the wide array of colors and textures available to treble choirs.

SKU: HL.49045941

UPC: 841886032941. 0.015 inches.

Composing soulful and expressive choral music has been the trademark of Alwin Michael Schronen for many years. A hauntingly beautiful testimony to that is his arrangement of Sally Gardens for three-part choir (SAB) and piano. This traditional Irish folk song is based on one of the first love poems by William Butler Yeats. Its melody is characterized by simplicity and catchiness whichare maintained by Schronen in a clean and natural manner in an easy-to-play choral setting for one male and two female voices singing in unison over long passages and are only seldom devided into three voices. The warm sounds of the easily playable piano accompaniment emphasize the melancholy and touching air of this wonderful Irish folk tune. A catchy tune - guaranteed!

SKU: CF.CM9773

ISBN 9781491164440. UPC: 680160923342. Key: C# minor. English. Christina Rossetti.

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,                                                       Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;                                                               Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,                                                             In the bleak midwinter, long ago.What can I give Him, poor as I am?                                                                                        If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;                                                                         If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;                                                                        Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.The text from this beloved poem of Christina Rossetti (1830–1894) was originally published in an 1872 issue of Scribner’s Monthly, under the title A Christmas Carol. In the first of its five stanzas, the speaker describes in great detail a bitingly cold winter scene, void of both warmth and light. By the final stanza, the speaker's thoughts turn inward, asking what gift they may offer the infant Jesus, meek though they believe themselves to be.The poem was later set by English composer Gustav Holst (1874–1934) as a contribution to the English Hymnal in 1906 and remains the most popular setting today.London-born Rossetti came to be regarded not only as one of the greatest female poets of her time, but as an outspoken advocate on several societal issues, including slavery and cruelty towards animals.In this setting, word painting is of the utmost importance. Careful attention to word stress throughout the course of the piece will make the performance all the more captivating. Descriptive lines such as “frosty wind made moan” should be conveyed with swelling crescendos, like frigid gusts of frozen air.While this piece features an original tune, the beloved Holst melody is also featured briefly, beginning in m. 28. Take care to bring this out.There are plenty of other allusions to wintry scenes scattered throughout the choral parts as well as the accompaniment. I encourage you to put your sleuthing “hats” on and find them all. It will make the learning experience much more memorable and fun.

SKU: HL.155573

UPC: 888680600815. 6.75x10.5x0.029 inches.

The Whitney Houston song from 1987 is recast as a powerful ballad with a theatrical feel and jazz stylistic elements that give the song a contemporary flair. This selection will be especially strong as a closer in pop, Broadway and spring programming for ensembles of all ages and voice types.

SKU: AP.47617

UPC: 038081543109. English.

The optional lilting flute and rhythmic hand drum parts lend a festive air to this song that celebrates the end of winter. Robust choral singing throughout beckons a change of season, and a soaring descant at the end signals the triumphant return of spring. A fully developed piece for winter and spring programs.

About Alfred Choral Designs

The Alfred Choral Designs Series provides student and adult choirs with a variety of secular choral music that is useful, practical, educationally appropriate, and a pleasure to sing. To that end, the Choral Designs series features original works, folk song settings, spiritual arrangements, choral masterworks, and holiday selections suitable for use in concerts, festivals, and contests.