Songs of Love and Loss

Description

Piano, Bass — Songs of Love and Loss for bass voice and piano was premiered byBryan Matthews at Juilliard in 1984. Subsequently in 2004, I arranged thework for Bass Trombone and Piano for Charlie Vernon, who premiered thework at the International Trombone Association Festival at Ithaca College.The poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay, with her beautiful, sometimesenigmatic, and always evocative poetry was the inspiration for the 4 songsof this cycle. The first poem, “The Dream,” is a paean to Love, with heartfeltxa0words embracing the beauty and enduring power of Love. The secondxa0poem, “Mariposa,” describes the brief, fleeting life of butterflies, brieflyxa0bringing their beauty to the world, then all too soon disappearing, lingeringxa0only in our memories and dreams. The third song is a story of life andxa0love, but ends sadly with loss. Life is celebrated, but like the butterflies inxa0the previous song, it too quickly disappears, only to exist in our memories,xa0beautifully, but wistfully. The final song, “A Crown of Bluer Metal” is a songxa0of determination, of rebuilding, of soldiering on despite sadness or tragedyxa0or the whims of life — it is ultimately a poem celebrating the circle of life...xa0enduring, despite all odds. “Songs of Love and Loss was originally written for bass voice and piano, and premiered by Bryan Matthews at Juilliard in 1984. Subsequently in 2004, I arranged the work for Bass Trombone and Piano for Charlie Vernon, who premiered the work at the International Trombone Association Festival at Ithaca College. The poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay, with her beautiful, sometimes enigmatic, and always evocative poetry was the inspiration for the four songs of this cycle.” (Eric Ewazen)