SSS+SATB a cappella
6 min duration
Wanderlied is the third movement from my five movement work “Barren Cabin, Tin Roof” written for the Elmer Iseler Singers (Lydia Adams). The EIS premiered the work in April, 2023.
This a cappella version was arranged for Chroma Vocal Ensemble (Mitchell Pady) with funding from the Ontario Arts Council 2024
Text by Marjorie Pickthall [in public domain]
O, would I had a swallow’s wings, for then I’d fly and find it; O, would I had a swallow’s heart, for then I’d love to roam! With an orchard on the hillside and an old, old man to mind it, O, there I’d lift my lodge at last and make my home.
O, there I’d see the tide come in along the whispering reaches, O, there I’d lie and watch the sails go shining to the west,
And there the fir-wood follows on the wide unswerving beaches, It’s there I’d lay me down and take my rest.
Wanderlied features large sections of music that make use of solos or small groups.
This work evokes themes of searching and longing; trying to find home and a place to feel whole. It incorporates alternations of hymn-like chorale passages and florid, improvisatory-like gesture
