The Slender Moon

Description

Voice 1, Voice 2, Voice 3, Piano — The African-American poet, Joseph S. Cotter, Jr., has a rich life story. I would encourage each singer to study and learn about this remarkable man and his inspiring life. When reading Mr. Cotter's poem Night Wind, I was drawn to the image of the "slender moon" and his description of the sky around the crescent. The calmness and the quiet reminded me of growing up and gazing into the day and evening skies, dreaming.This work should be approached with gentleness and tenderness. Like light drops of rain on water, the piano accompaniment is purposefully composed to be simple, with each note an important touch beneath the legato and harmony-rich vocals. Throughout the piece, rubato should be carefully woven as the text is interpreted, as it's a very important part of this piece. Some places are marked, while others should be designed by the director and choir.As always, vowels are everything. This work should allow for good vowel teaching and soft consonant work for the singers.If I could choose one word to describe this piece and your approach to learning and performing it, it would be "caring." With gently soothing harmonic colors, Greg Gilpin captures the mystery of the slender moon in this wonderful setting. Inspired by the descriptive text found in poet Joseph S. Cotter, Jr's. poem Night Winds, The Slender Moon will wow audiences and choirs alike. Also available for SSA Voices (BL1009) and SATB Voices (BL1150).

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