O Art Gracieux (2010)
Commissioned by Susan Curtice
Solo Soprano and Piano
~3:00
Solo Soprano and Piano
~3:00
PROGRAM NOTE:
For me O Art Gracieux is very much about duality. Not knowing French was a great struggle when working with this text, because I based the setting solely on the brief study I did of the language and the translation of the text, not on my understanding of the original language or text. I decided to represent this in the tonal language of the piece by using a sort of polytonal backdrop. The next struggle was to set the text in a way that supported the meaning of the text, but also represented my feelings on the piece as a whole. The product is a setting that is a bit unexpected based solely on the text, but represents the process of its creation well. O Art Gracieux was commissioned by Susan Curtice.
youtube video
For me O Art Gracieux is very much about duality. Not knowing French was a great struggle when working with this text, because I based the setting solely on the brief study I did of the language and the translation of the text, not on my understanding of the original language or text. I decided to represent this in the tonal language of the piece by using a sort of polytonal backdrop. The next struggle was to set the text in a way that supported the meaning of the text, but also represented my feelings on the piece as a whole. The product is a setting that is a bit unexpected based solely on the text, but represents the process of its creation well. O Art Gracieux was commissioned by Susan Curtice.
youtube video
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TEXT:
O Art gracieux, dans combien d'heures sombres, Où le cycle de la vie me saisit As-tu mon coeur, car un amour débute, Tu m'as conduit dans un bien meilleur monde! Souvent, un soupir a échappé de ton harpe, Un doux accord béni de ta presence M'a ouvert un meilleur temps au ciel, O Art gracieux, merci pour ceci! -Original poem by Franz von Schober -Translation by Claire Curtice, used with permission |
TRANSLATION:
O gracious Art, in how many gray hours, Where am ensnared wild life circle Hast thou my heart to warm love ignite, You have caught me in a better world! Often a sigh, your harp has flowed, A sweet, blest chord of thine The heaven of better times I opened up, O gracious Art, thank you for it! |