Sonnet 2 from Two German Sonnets (2018) by Trevor Shaw

Описание: Inversion Ensemble I.
Inversion Ensemble
Trevor Shaw, Artistic Director
http://inversionensemble.com

Two German Sonnets (2018) by Trevor Shaw
Trevor Shaw & Lena Hill, Soloists

The word “German”, in this case, refers to the language, as opposed to the nationalities of the poets who composed the two sonnets. After all, Rilke was native to Austria, though he lived a portion of his life in Munich, among other places. Both Rilke and Goethe are among the most revered figures of all time in the artistic world, and rightfully so. Both were a part of a culture that included poetry, visual arts, and philosophy. It’s the way that philosophy for both men was intertwined with their understanding of science and nature that draws me to their work. Their poetry represents so much more than the literal words themselves. Both of the selected sonnets are vividly descriptive of those things which our senses experience: colors, tastes, even the feeling of freedom. I explored an extensive harmonic language and modality to depict those experiences throughout. Just flirting with the whole-tone scale seems to evoke certain reactions from the general listening masses! What was important in the process was maintaining relatively direct, simple melodies while the harmony accounted for most of the adventurous aspects of the work. Much like my previous work, Aquamarine , Two German Sonnets is more atmospheric than narrative, despite the spots in each movement that could be interpreted as climactic. Those are simply places to bask in a few more colors!

Text:

I. To a Golden Heart, Which He Wore on His Neck by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)

Recall the happiness, the glittering joy
Luscious apple, pear and I still wear around my neck -
banana, gooseberry Do you last longer, o my soul-band,
To extend those short days filled with love?
Lily, I flee from your presence.
I am stuck roaming foreign lands,
Through distant valleys and forests.
Alas, I believed Lily’s heart could not
Unlink from my heart so soon.
As when a bird breaks from a snare
And flies into the verdant forest
He leaves behind him evidence of his capture -
Just a bit of the threads that bound him.
He cannot be the same free bird he once was,
For he will always be a bird which was once imprisoned.

II. The Sonnets to Orpheus by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926)
All of these taste like death and life in the mouth,
I suppose
Read it on a child’s face
If this scares her, you have gone too far.
Do you slowly become unable to say your name?
Where words once flowed,
Find the surprise the pulp has unleashed,
I dare say it was the sweet apple.
The sweetest and richest fruit
Quietly makes us awake, clear, lucid,
Doubly aware of your connection
To the surrounding sunny, earthy environs.
O, the experience of such feeling, the enormous joy!

Trevor Shaw, Composer & Artistic Director
Trevor Shaw is an Austin, Texas-based musician who stumbled into the world of choral music by accident. While earning a degree in trombone performance from the University of North Texas, Trevor was approached to become the Music Minister for the United Methodist Campus Ministry. Accepting the position led to a lifetime career in church music and the urge for Trevor to compose and arrange for the various choirs he was
conducting. He has since led choirs throughout the U.S., the UK and Ireland. His choral and instrumental works have also been performed by many church choirs, professional ensembles and academic choirs across the U.S. Trevor is also very active as a private music instructor, a singer and instrumentalist, and maintains a widely-read music blog. He is co-owner of and principal arranger for the professional a cappella company, Tinsel. Trevor’s diverse musical influences include composers such as Herbert Howells, Richard Wagner, Arvo Pärt and Herbie Hancock.

Who is Inversion Ensemble?

Austin’s Inversion Ensemble is a choral collective made up of composers and singers formed to give voice to innovative choral works and to encourage the creation of new music, especially in the Austin area. A great deal of our repertoire is written especially for Inversion Ensemble by composers who sing within the ranks of the ensemble.
While many members of Inversion Ensemble perform, conduct, compose, study, and teach music full-time, the group also includes non-professional participants who are equally passionate about choral music and ensuring it thrives as a modern art form.