When Hearts Overflow, commissioned by Kelly Ann Self and the Orange Coast College Chorale, sets the beautiful poem by Kelly Ann Self. The text is a reminder that we can overcome pain and hardship if we unite, both figuratively and literally, in singing. The musical texture alternates between legato vocal lines accompanied by flowing piano arpeggios and punchier vocal statements supported by contrapuntal piano dialogue, acting as a metaphor for continuously finding joy amidst difficult times.

This piece is suitable for any Mixed-Voice ensemble and would fit well in any concert about mental health.

The music and lyrics of Songs of Hope in Strange Times: In Times of Rising was written during the COVID-19 global pandemic of 2020-onwards and was commissioned by Loyola Marymount University, directed by T.J. Harper. The overall song cycle is five movements long, with each movement reflecting on how to find hope and meaning during strange and unknown times of life. In Times of Rising, the fifth and final movement of the song cycle, celebrates our return to life, being together, and finding joy once again. It explores how the world around us seems so different once we have gone through difficult experiences. This feeling of seeing things in a different light can apply to so many transformative periods in our lives, including relationships, birth, death, and personal journeys. The hope with this movement and the entire Songs of Hope in Strange Times cycle is to provide a framework in which to process powerful experiences, heal from tremendous loss, and arrive at the other side with wiser minds and hearts.

This movement could be performed as a stand-alone piece or as part of the entire Songs of Hope in Strange Times song cycle.

See other movements:

I. In Times of Descent
II. In Times of Hibernation
III. In Times of Stasis
IV. In Times of Re-Emergence

The music and lyrics of Songs of Hope in Strange Times: In Times of Re-Emergence was written during the COVID-19 global pandemic of 2020-onwards and was commissioned by SACRA/PROFANA, directed by Juan Carlos Acosta. The overall song cycle is five movements long, with each movement reflecting on how to find hope and meaning during strange and unknown times of life. In Times of Re-Emergence, the fourth movement of the song cycle, represents a joyful return to one’s life, albeit a cautious return initially, after a prolonged hiatus. The 9/8 meter has a dance-like quality, allowing a lighter mood after the more intense third movement, In Times of Stasis. The overall Strophic form (containing three Verses with the same melody and overall harmonies) allows for the performers and audience alike to relax in the familiarity of the material as it unfolds.

This movement could be performed as a stand-alone piece or as part of the entire Songs of Hope in Strange Times song cycle.

See other movements:

I. In Times of Descent
II. In Times of Hibernation
III. In Times of Stasis
V. In Times of Rising

The music and lyrics of Songs of Hope in Strange Times: In Times of Descent was written during the COVID-19 global pandemic of 2020-onwards and was commissioned by SACRA/PROFANA, directed by Juan Carlos Acosta. The overall song cycle is five movements long, with each movement reflecting on how to find hope and meaning during strange and unknown times of life. In Times of Descent is the frenzied opening movement of the cycle, representing those first chaotic and terrifying days when COVID-19 appeared in March, 2020 in the United States. The piece portrays this unsettling time through sinking, descending chromatic lines and heavy metal-inspired pulsating strings. This feeling of descending can be applied to those times in life when the world as we know it seems to fall apart and the end is nowhere in sight, such as the first days following a loved one’s passing, the minutes after receiving life-altering news, or other moments immediately following a tragedy. This movement acts as a mirror of the fifth and final movement In Times of Rising: using rising instead of falling lines, referencing the “sky and sea” (which are clouded by the darkness described in In Times of Descent), and other elements of contrast.

This movement could be performed as a stand-alone piece or as part of the entire Songs of Hope in Strange Times song cycle.

See other movements:

II. In Times of Hibernation
III. In Times of Stasis
IV. In Times of Re-Emergence
V. In Times of Rising

I Celebrate Life (the second and last movement of the Light Cycle suite), commissioned by Jennifer Gaderlund for the Graham Middle School Choirs, sets the beautiful poem by Rhoda Gordon, the composer’s late grandmother, for SATB (orig. SSA) Choir and Piano. The piece opens with an excited yet hushed ostinato in the Piano. The choir sings the first four lines of the poem by repeating the beginning line and adding the next line until it is complete, utilizing the modern technique of additive processes popular in Minimalism. In the more pensive middle section, the ostinato transforms into a more poignant texture as the Choir “realizes the joy of being through seeing the glorious creation” that they are a part of. The ostinato then speeds up and returns to the hushed excitement heard in the opening. The piece concludes with the Choir building up to the most important line of the text: “The most powerful light to celebrate by is love.”

This piece is suitable for any Mixed-Voice ensemble.

Mars in Retrograde, commissioned by Kat Anderson and dedicated to The Los Angeles Belles, is a 3-part vocalise for SSA and Piano based on planetary motion and gravitational orbits. The voices represent the orbits of the planets (S1 as Venus, S2 as Earth, and Alto as Mars) around the sun, which is represented by the Piano. Each planet (voice) has a distinct repeating rhythmic pattern whose length corresponds to each planet’s sidereal period (how long it takes the planet to fully orbit around the sun). The repeating rhythmic pattern uses the musical technique of isorhythm, where a repeating rhythmic pattern (called the talea) is combined with separate pitch material (called the color). Venus’s sidereal period is roughly .616 Earth years, corresponding to a 7.5 measure talea. Earth’s sidereal period is 1 Earth year, corresponding to a 12 measure talea (based on the 12 months in a year). Mar’s sidereal period is roughly 1.9 Earth years, corresponding to a 22.75 measure talea. The rhythmic activity increases until the mid-point of each talea, after which the rhythmic value decreases again. This represents how planets increase in speed as they approach their closest point to the sun (perihelion) and decrease in speed as they approach the farthest point from the sun (aphelion).

The entire piece is tuned to the fundamental of Bb, as the lowest recorded note in the universe is a black hole that vibrates at a Bb 57 octaves below Middle C. The piece exclusively uses the Bb Lydian Dominant scale, also referred to as the acoustic scale, which can be created by assembling the first 12 partials of the overtone series based on the fundamental of Bb.

As Time Stops To Rest is a three-movement song cycle for SSAATTBB Choir and Piano, with featured soprano and tenor soloists. The cycle is dedicated to the composer’s late aunt Susan Jordan. The works sets three poems from a larger set of poetry entitled As Time Stops To Rest, also written by Susan Jordan. The song cycle has an overall arch form of peace followed by tragedy and loss, ultimately giving way to a final sense of peace.

The first movement, Two Friends, paints a peaceful scene of two friends losing track of time as they sit by the ocean enjoying their time together. The piece opens with serene rolled chords in the piano, which continue throughout almost the entirety of the movement. The constant rolling of the piano creates a sense of ocean waves continuously ebbing and flowing. The opening tenor solo describes the tranquil setting and is then joined by the full choir as “warmth and happiness intermix to form an afternoon shared by two close friends”. The movement features lush harmonies and detailed ensemble interplay. The movement concludes with the continued rolled chords in the piano and a final soft low cluster, as if the texture is sinking into the ocean.

The second movement, Storm’s End, opens with violent and flurried storm-like arpeggios in the piano, in stark contrast to the peaceful character of Two Friends. The tenors and basses open with a rigid imitative texture asserting how “the storm raged across the bliss field”. The piano then mimics raindrops falling more and more violently before finally giving way to a calmer texture. After the “storm” has ended, the full choir enters in a mostly homophonic, hymn-like texture describing an overwhelming peace that sometimes follows after an intense tragedy or loss. The piece climaxes on the words “day” and “fire”, alluding to the feeling of being in love with one’s life despite (and perhaps because of) the pain and suffering one has endured.

The third and final movement, Magic, describes how the narrator senses the closeness of “the spirit kingdom” all around him or her, but only has fleeting glimpses of it. The piece opens with an a cappella dialogue between the altos and tenors, who are then joined by the sopranos and basses. The a cappella opening features lush and tightly packed harmonies that lead to a soprano soloist cueing in a lyrical piano arpeggio. The piece then builds to the joyous climax of the whole song cycle: “But oh, for a moment I grow flowers with my hands!”, alluding to how powerful and wondrous these brief glimpses of the spirit kingdom are. The texture then drops down to lulling a cappella chords in the lower voices as two featured soprano soloists “dance on wings uplifted”. The narrator then finally enters “the kingdom of all” he or she has been sensing, possibly through death. The movement concludes peacefully as the narrator “enter[s] the kingdom of all and AM”. The piano concludes with a peaceful postlude recalling motives used throughout the movement.

This song cycle would be suitable for an advanced high school, college, or professional choir. The movements may be performed as stand-alone pieces or as part of the full cycle.