A Poem Of Light

SKU: FG.55011-484-5

ISBN 9790550114845.

In January 1999, Nieminen worked with his oboe piece Elegy for Agatha. The work kept running through his mind. Its musically intimate and intriguing setting seemed to include sufficient elements for explicating a bigger whole. The poem by Hannele Huovi was the inspiration of the sequel: Kuulen virtaavaa valoa ja se on pimeys (I can here streaming light and it is darkness).
In his work, Nieminen also looks back on his days in military service. The mental pictures created decades ago on guard during winter frost amid silence combined with Huovi's poem took a musical shape. I Hear Streaming Light (1999) for the String Quartet was created out of these ideas, which together with Elegy for Agatha constitute a whole called I Can Hear Northern Lights. All musical material and melodic themes of the string quartet piece originate from Elegy for Agatha but they do not appear in their original forms.

SKU: CF.CM9707

ISBN 9781491160121. UPC: 680160918720. Key: Db major. John Gillespie Magee. Poem by John Gillespie Magee, Jr.

Just weeks after his nineteenth birthday, John Gillespie Magee, Jr. wrote the poem High Flight while serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force. The year was 1941, and World War II was culminating toward its darkest chapters. Magee had just completed his seventh flight in the iconic Spitfire Mk I fighter plane, soaring to heights well above 30,000 feet. These high altitude exercises supplied his inspiration for the poem, which describes the long, delirious, burning blue and having touched the face of God. Tragically, Magee died in a training exercise just months after writing High Flight. His words, however, live on to lift our hearts and stir the imagination. After you have learned High Flight, ask yourself the following questions: Are you singing the text clearly and articulately? Are you properly stressing the important syllables and backing off of non-stressed syllables? Is there a sense of energy throughout the piece, in both the lyrical, flowing sections and the up-tempo, faster sections? Are you also singing with a sense of energy no matter what the dynamic marking? Are you singing phrases with proper breath support and a sense of rise and fall to the phrase?.
Just weeks after his nineteenth birthday, John Gillespie Magee, Jr. wrote the poem High Flight while serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force. The year was 1941, and World War II was culminating toward its darkest chapters. Magee had just completed his seventh flight in the iconic Spitfire Mk I fighter plane, soaring to heights well above 30,000 feet. These high altitude exercises supplied his inspiration for the poem, which describes “the long, delirious, burning blue” and having “touched the face of God.”Tragically, Magee died in a training exercise just months after writing High Flight. His words, however, live on to lift our hearts and stir the imagination. After you have learned High Flight, ask yourself the following questions: Are you singing the text clearly and articulately? Are you properly stressing the important syllables and backing off of non-stressed syllables? Is there a sense of energy throughout the piece, in both the lyrical, flowing sections and the up-tempo, faster sections? Are you also singing with a sense of energy no matter what the dynamic marking? Are you singing phrases with proper breath support and a sense of rise and fall to the phrase?

SKU: PE.TSGB026S

UPC: 038081585109.

The Sacred Spheres by Tyler S. Grant is written in two contrasting movements. The title of the first movement, From Harmony, from heav'nly harmony..., comes directly from the first line of John Dryden's poem, A Song for St. Cecilia's Day. The first few notes musically depict the beginning of the universal framework described in the text through delicate textures and orchestrations that develop as the movement progresses. The second stanza of the poem highlights the capacity for musical elements to inspire passion, which is represented at the climax of the first movement.

The second movement, Cries, hark the foe comes, picks up the poem from the third stanza, highlighting the spectrum of emotions that can be summoned by various instruments. The beginning of the movement highlights the trumpet's loud clangor along with drums that inspire war and conflict. The movement transitions to a section of mourning through the sound of a warbling flute. The ending of the movement combines the final stanzas along with the Grand Chorus to recapitulate earlier material and create a celebratory and impactful finale.

Commissioned by a consortium of bands in honor of Randall O. Coleman; Recorded by the Kennesaw State University Wind Ensemble.

SKU: MN.56-0054

UPC: 688670220579. English.

Arranged for SATB choir, two keyboards, strings, and optional harp, with soprano, tenor (optional) and baritone soloists, this fresh and unorthodox interpretation reflects on the words of the Latin Mass by juxtaposing them with poems in English. This movement has no soprano part, it is soloist above and ATB below, giving a rich, dark quality to the music. The tenors and basses (divisi) begin this movement, declaiming “Dies irae, dies illa.” Two soloists begin in the “Flanders fields” text above. There is an option for three soloists as the piece evolves. (Soprano, tenor and baritone, the composer gives some options for this.) Soon the choir takes up the poem, yet the Latin text occasionally appears and continues, moving toward a climax on the text “We are the Dead, Short days ago We lived.” As the music descends from the high point, the English poem continues, with the choir very softly commenting “Dies irae” as the movement ends. Duration 5:36.

SKU: CF.YPS211F

ISBN 9781491152980. UPC: 680160910489.

A Certain Slant of Light is inspired by the introspective mood created by the rays of light on a dark cloudy day.  A colorful, murmuring introduction is followed by a rich main theme in a minor key. It is a well-scored and fresh-sounding piece that will help young bands enhance their musicality.
Rays of light against the dark of a cloudy day, or these same rays of light as they penetrate a dark room in late afternoon can create a mood of introspection and make us pause to reflect on the nature of life, loss and hope. A Certain Slant of Light is inspired by the title, but does not depict the actual poem There is a Certain Slant of Light by Emily Dickinson.A Certain Slant of Light opens with a colorful murmuring introduction followed immediately by a statement of the main theme of the piece. The opening briefly returns, followed by a setting of the melody in flute with woodwind accompaniment. The opening then returns and grows to a climax built on variations of the main theme. The piece fades to silence with a soft echo of the opening murmuring material.I enjoyed writing this piece and hope your students will enjoy playing these contrasting styles and that you will find the piece beneficial in teaching important musical concepts.Peter Terry, 2018.

SKU: CF.WE21

ISBN 9781491144763. UPC: 680160902262. 9 x 12 inches. Key: Db major.

The inspirational foundation is the Emily Dickinson poem of the same name. Through five movements, each named after a phrase from the poem, Hedwig builds his dialogue slowly in intensity. The music moves, generally, from darkness to light, with occasional moments of reflection and conflict along the way as the drama unfolds...The musical language combines elements of traditional musical melody and tonality, with atonality, minimalism, and even hints of jazz...traces of traditional religious liturgical musical forms and idioms, as well. (Chattanooga Symphony and Opera program notes) For advanced performers.

SKU: SU.27120140

A song cycle based on poems of Lawrence Ferlinghetti from his book titled How to Paint Sunlight. The settings are of The Changing Light, Big Sur Light, The Moon Stayed Full Last Month, and Dictionaries of Light.Soprano & Piano Duration: 16' Composed: 2016 Published by: Lapis Island Press.

SKU: MN.56-0051

UPC: 688670220548. English.

Arranged for SATB choir, two keyboards, strings, and optional harp, with soprano, tenor (optional) and baritone soloists, this fresh and unorthodox interpretation reflects on the words of the Latin Mass by juxtaposing them with poems in English. Set entirely for a soloist (soprano, tenor, or baritone) above choir accompaniment, this movement has no Latin text; the English text is a poem by Ann Thorp (“I have to believe That you still exist Somewhere”). This movement stands entirely on its own as a beautiful anthem of comfort and assurance. Duration 3:07.