Tell Me Again How the New Comes Into the World (2014)
For medium female voice; available from North Star Music. Overall range C4-F5. These poems, written by poet Claire Bateman especially for these songs on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Fine Arts Center, are a practitioner’s rumination on the creative process itself. The songs:
I. Tell Me Again - set in an innocent waltz, it begs to know how a new thing comes into being and why it is chosen from amongst the infinite possibilities. About 2:35; range D4-E5.
II. It Begins - set in a mysterious, non-metrical mist of colorful harmonies, it offers vague clues to the answers sought by the first song in a musical netherworld – in the twilight between singing and speaking – as the proffered clues are elaborate and indirect. About 2:40; range C4-E5.
III. This is How - this song is rollicking and assertive, declaring the artist’s resolve to command the stuff of his creation and his passion for the challenge. About 2:50; range C4-F5.
IV. Epilogue: Never the Same - should the first three songs be sung by three different singers, this is an optional last song that can bring all three on stage for a sort of summation. About 1:30.