Voices: SATB, 2 perc, 2 pno - Bloom

Ensemble: chorus (SATB), 2 percussion, 2 pianos

Duration: 4 minutes

Commissioned by: Manhattan Choral Ensemble

Premiered: Church for All Nations, NYC, New York

Published by: Yes Daedalus Music

Note:

Bloom and Round Dance are two short pieces written as a response to Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, one of the most towering and intimidating pieces of music in the Western canon. Although I knew Carmina best for its monumental opening and closing numbers, I was drawn more to the folk music in the middle sections, particularly VII. Floret Silva (The Forest Flowers) and IX. Reie (Round Dance). I was struck by the text, which, in translation from the Latin and Middle High German, conveyed an intimacy and vulnerability that surprised me. I decided to set an English translation of these lyrics, hoping to highlight a moment of closeness in the face of, as O Fortuna puts it, “monstrous and empty” Fate.

Bloom begins with a pastoral scene: the forest is in bloom. As the narrator realizes her companion will not return, however, the mood gets darker. The second half of the piece illustrates this “blooming” realization that her love is lost.

Round Dance starts with an uneven, propulsive dance, prompting a slow seduction: “come my beloved, I am awaiting.” As the music swells, the intensity of the seduction increases, whirling into the night. The second half of the text (“come and make me well”) I imagine being spoken the next morning— the simple, warm feeling of waking up with a new love.