Mixed
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Fragile
Mezzo-Soprano or SATB, Flute, and String Orchestra
Commissioned by Kirk Smith for Orchestra Unlimited and the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra for release on "American Expressions" CD on the Centaur Record label, TBA 2017, in Mezzo-Soprano voicing. Semi-Finalist for The American Prize 2017.
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Though the choice of text for this piece was initially motivated by the political situation in the USA in 2016-2017, this piece quickly became personal for me when one of my children became seriously ill. What had began as a question to my country--"Where do the fragile ones among us belong?"-- became a personal meditation on the nurturing of life itself.
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SOME, too fragile for winter winds,
The thoughtful grave encloses,—
Tenderly tucking them in from frost
Before their feet are cold.
Never the treasures in her nest
The cautious grave exposes,
Building where schoolboy dare not look
And sportsman is not bold.
This covert have all the children
Early aged, and often cold,—
Sparrows unnoticed by the Father;
Lambs for whom time had not a fold.
by Emily Dickinson
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Click HERE for recording
$40.00 score and parts, $3.00 ea for choral parts
Fugue (in c minor, BWV 847 from the Well-Tempered Clavier Book I)
SATB unaccompanied with optional improvised Vocal Percussion
Originally designating a pearl of irregular shape, "Baroque" describes a style of European architecture, music, and art of the 17th and 18th centuries that is characterized by ornate detail. Jazz, by contrast, is described by Louis Armstrong as "If you have to ask what it is, you'll never know." To introduce the elaborate works of Bach in the freedom of a vocal jazz idiom is a concept which is a match made in heaven by Ward Swingle.
This piece is a fusion of Baroque and jazz styles offered in the "Swingle style." Ward Swingle studied music, particularly jazz, from a very young age. He specialized in scat singing jazz standards and subsequently applied the scat singing idea to the works of Johann Sebastian Bach. This concept was the foundation for The Swingle Singers whose early recordings won five Grammy Awards.
In the spirit of Ward Swingle, "Fugue"is set with scat lyrics with improvised vocal percussion.
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$1.50
Git Along Little Dogies
SA(T)B, Two-Part Treble, or Unison with Piano and optional Guitar, Ukulele, Mandolin, and Bass
2016 Idaho Middle School All-State Choir, inaugural year
2016 Northshore 6th Grade Honor Choir, boys
Conceived using the SA(T)B concept and also available in Two-Part Treble and Unison voicings, Git Along Little Dogies is a traditional American cowboy ballad. The melody and lyrics were first published in 1910 in John Lomax's "Cowboy Songs and Other Frontier Ballads," though the song has existed long before publication in the anonymous aural tradition of folk music.
Since selling cattle was quite profitable, a crew of cowboys "drove" a herd, particularly from Texas, to railheads where they would be loaded into railcars and shipped cross-country to get the best price at market. Cowboys watched the cattle 24 hours a day, herding them in the proper direction in the daytime and watching them at night to prevent stampedes and deter theft. Around the campfire, cowboys sang of life on the trail with all the challenges, hardships, and dangers encountered along the way.
E. C. "Teddy Blue" Abbott, honored in the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame, explains "The singing was supposed to soothe the cattle and it did... The two men on guard would circle around with their horses on a walk, if it was a clear night and the cattle was bedded down and quiet, and one man would sing a verse of a song, and his partner on the other side of the herd would sing another verse; and you'd go through a whole song that way."
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$1.50
The Huron Carol
SATB unaccompanied with Flute
I was introduced to this tune from a beautiful children's picture book illustrated by Frances Tyrrell. The imagery of the Christ child appearing in a far-removed cultural context was eye-opening as I considered the blonde-haired, blue-eyed Jesus I knew. I was delighted to find a lesser-known, hauntingly beautiful, and fresh Christmas piece in the face of more familiar carols. It was like re-discovering the nativity story for the first time through someone else's perspective.
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$1.50
If I Had a Hammer
Two-Part Mixed with Piano
"If I Had a Hammer (The Hammer Song)" is a song written by Pete Seeger and Lee Hays in 1949. Written in support of the progressive movement, it was first recorded by The Weavers, a folk music quartet composed of Seeger, Hays, Ronnie Gilbert and Fred Hellerman. The song was first performed publicly at a testimonial dinner for the leaders of the Communist Party of the United States who were then on trial in federal court, charged with advocating the overthrow of the U.S. government. The song fared notably better in commercial terms when it was recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary a dozen years later.
This arrangement is well-suited for choirs of adult beginners, and was commissioned by Dr. Adam Burdick for the North Seattle Community College Choir.
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$2.50
Lost Songs of Ancient Ireland
SATB and Treble Descant with Piano or Harp, Bodhran, Violin, and Irish Flute
Commissioned by Cora Voce; Tacoma, WA
Included in Project : Encore 2017, Quarter 1: PROJECT : ENCOREâ„¢ has found this work to be of exceptional merit and has included it in the exclusive P:E Catalog of Contemporary Choral Music
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"Lost Songs of Ancient Ireland," for Mixed Choir with Treble Descant, Piano or Harp, Bodhran, Irish Flute, and Violin, is a three-movement song cycle that focuses on the shifting relationships over the scope of a lifetime from the differing perspective of each person involved.
I. Old Beggarman— Two interwoven jigs, "It Was an Old Beggarman, Weary and Wet" and "Ag an mBóithrÃn Buà (At the Yellow Little Road)," of both a young lady's observation of a wandering beggarman and his unrequited, possibly unexpressed, love for her. They are offered together as alternate perspectives from potential romantic partners, and features lilting, mouth music, or portaireacht bhéil (port a'bhéil, "mouth-singing") as it is known in Irish Gaelic.
II. I Would Rock My Child to Sleep— A sentimental Irish lullaby Irish lullaby "Do Chuirfinnse Féin Mo Leanbh a Chodladh (I Would Put My Own Child to Sleep)" highlights the shifting roles of a caregiver: the parent full of hopes of the parent for the child morphing over a lifetime into a blessing from the grown child to the aged parent. Each verse is progressively based upon an overall narrative:
1. hopes of the parent for the child
2. an easy, natural rhythm to family life, possibly the child is older now, and there is a dream of family continuance
3. uncertainty over who is nurturing who: does the child now sing to comfort the parent?
4. a closing blessing for peace and rest that hearkens back to the successful sleep of a tired infant
III. The Drummer— An energetic reel, a combination of "Maidin Fhómhair, nó CailÃn Péacach (The Harvest Maiden, or Sprouting Maiden)" and "Cormac Spáinneach, nó An Drumadóir (Cormac Spaineach, or The Drummer)," alternating between romantic partners encased by a nostalgic love song, suggesting the passing of a lifetime.
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$4.50
Mozart's At the Window
SATB or Two-Part Treble with Piano
Text and concept by Gunnar Madsen
Music abridged from W. A. Mozart's Symphony No.40 in G minor, K.550 IV. Allegro assai
After getting absolutely sick of the inane music I'd been playing for my young children in the car, I was elated to discover Gunnar Madsen's CD "I'm Growing" featuring "Mozart's At the Window." The kids were delighted with this funny song about some naughty kid, and my husband and I were delighted with the enormous improvement of musical quality in our vehicle. It was shortly thereafter that this choral arrangement was born.
Gunnar writes, "In my first music theory class in college, the teacher and the students were recalling the silly ways they'd been taught to remember classical melodies when they were young. One of them was for Mozart's 40th symphony (which I'd never heard) which consisted of "Now Mozart's at the window - Let him in, Let him in, Let him in". What an ear-worm! For 25 years now I've dreamt of expanding that ditty into something more substantial, and now I'm proud to present the finished piece. I'm really going to get a kick of sending this one to my teacher!"
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$2.50
Sailing on the Dew
SATB or Two-Part Treble with Piano
Commissioned for the Redmond Centennial Celebration with themes of "Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow," this faux sea-chanty is a fictional account of the "Jennie June" which may or may not have played a role in helping homesteaders settle Redmond, WA. Redmond is the homesite of Microsoft, other tech companies, and many new start-ups. This contemporary adventure- and fortune-seeking hearkens back to the settling of the area and forward to what sort of spirit of adventure will draw future homesteaders to the area.
The muddy Squak River was so shallow, boats were said to be "sailing on the dew" and to take so long that boats would sail up in January and return in June. It was slow-going from Seattle to the Eastside until they got the right vessel for the job. The water was too shallow for paddle steamers, and the Jennie June was a much-beloved vessel with a propeller on the back to better navigate the difficult river.
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$1.50
Three Folk Carols for Mary: I. The Cherry Tree Carol
SATB unaccompanied
Featured on the following reading sessions
2011 | OH ACDA
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Santa Barbara Music Publishing: "An artful arrangement, the open harmonies reflect the early roots of this carol. Number one of a charming set of Three American Christmas Carols for Mary."
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Three Folk Carols for Mary: II. Ain't That A-Rockin' All Night
SATB unaccompanied
Featured on the following reading sessions
2010 | KY ACDA
2010 | Central CA Reading Session
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Santa Barbara Music Publishing: "Number two of Three American Christmas Carols for Mary, the arranger draws from her personal experience as a young mother in this tender and clever arrangement."
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Three Folk Carols for Mary: III. Mary, What You Gonna Name That Pretty Little Baby?
SATB unaccompanied
Featured on the following reading sessions
2011 | California ACDA Reading Session
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Santa Barbara Music Publishers: "Number three of Three American Christmas Carols for Mary, the special charm of this set is in great evidence here."
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Two Sacred American Folk Songs
SATB unaccompanied
This collection of Two Sacred American Folk Songs are purposefully chosen and paired as a question and resolution to a spiritual journey.
I. Shepherd, Shepherd: The first in a set of two, "Shepherd, Shepherd" is a spiritual included in John W. Work's collection of "American Negro Songs and Spirituals," published in 1940. It is also included in Ruth Crawford Seeger's collection "American Folk Songs for Christmas." Though two illustrious collectors included this beautiful song, it is little-known, possibly because it was not popularized by historic performances by the Jubilee Singers who brought awareness to the musical richness of African-American Choral Music and associated repertoire.
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II. Child of God: Much American folk music features the use of instruments. In the absence of available instruments, in the presence of a religious culture that may frown upon instrumental usage, and/or influenced by Irish culture that mimics instrumental textures as a form of "mouth music," this a cappella piece is fully orchestrated. Personally, I absolutely adore the idea of the Christ child singing softly. This idea was the genesis of this arrangement. The nature of the human voice can both deliver text as well as deliver an abstract timbre through the text. In this piece, both uses of the voice interact between the text and the voice as orchestration. When the Christ child sings, the instrumental texture shifts to "la." When the wind blows, the accompanimental texture is still text-driven, but on a more closed vowel [o] of "blow" to mimic the wind. Personally, I absolutely adore the idea of the Christ child singing softly. This idea was the genesis of this arrangement.
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$3.00
Vivaldi "Winter:" Kyrie and Gloria
SATB unaccompanied
This arrangement of "Vivaldi's 'Winter'" was written for a cappella small ensemble, in the hope to balance a heavily sacred Baroque concert in December 2017.
The text offered is the "Kyrie" and "Gloria" from the ordinary mass, which has become a sort of blank canvas for composers to creatively express their individuality, or in this case, to translate instrumental textures in a choral medium. Why should string players have all the Vivaldi "Four Seasons" fun?
$1.50
We Learned the Whole of Love
SATB with Piano
Included in Project : Encore, 2017, Quarter 2: PROJECT : ENCOREâ„¢ has found this work to be of exceptional merit and has included it in the exclusive P:E Catalog of Contemporary Choral Music
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In the wisdom or fog of High School, I would daydream about what love truly was. I pined away from summer camp for the boy back home, imagining that I had found the Real Thing. It is now several decades later, and after a few bumps and bruises suffered from trying to figure out just what "true love" actually is, I have discovered that this text is more about the journey of love and not about the destination. This poem, like great Art, shifts and changes in meaning as the reader grows in understanding and changes. I imagine that Love is like Art in this way— shifting in meaning over a lifetime of maturity and growth.
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$1.50
The Wind that Shakes the Barley
SATB with Piano or Harp
NWACDA Convention 2008
Oregon OMEA All-State Choir 2010
Liederkranz Reading Session 2010
TMEA University Interscholastic League Prescribed Music List
Semi-Finalist for The American Prize 2017
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GIA: "This is the ballad of a young Wexford rebel facing the 1798 uproar in Ireland. His life changes while spending a few last moments with his true love before joining the rebellion. Rebels carried barley oats as provisions which later grew in unexpected places, indicating the unmarked mass graves for slain rebels in Ireland. With piano or harp, this is a lovely and haunting piece unforgettable for singers and audiences."
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