Tonight
Born in Granada, Spain, educator/composer/singer Enrique Lacárcel holds degrees from the University of Granada, the Eastman School of Music, and the University of Jaén.  Tonight is a setting of a poem by Sara Teasdale.

The moon is a curving flower of gold.
The sky is still, still and blue.
The moon was made for the sky to hold,
And I for you.

The moon is a flower without a stem.
The sky is luminous;
Eternity was made for them,
Tonight for us.

Red Is the Rose
This poem, traditionally set to the folk tune “Loch Lomond,” is of an anonymous writer from County Kerry in West Ireland.  It tells the story of a young man setting sail toward foreign lands, leaving behind both his sister and his love, who both died during the Irish Famine.

Come over the hills, my bonnie Irish lass,
Come over the hills to your darling,
You choose the rose, love, and I’ll make the vow
And I’ll be your true love forever.

Red is the rose by yonder garden grows
Fair is the lily of the valley
Clear is the water that flows from the Boyne,
But my love is fairer than any.

‘Twas down by Killarney’s green woods that we strayed,
When the moon and the stars they were shining,
The moon shown its rays on her locks of golden hair
And she swore she’d be his love forever.

It’s not for the parting that my sister pains,
It’s not for the grief of my mother,
It’s all for the loss of my bonnie Irish lass
That my heart is breaking forever.

The Lake Isle
This 2015 setting of a poem by William Butler Yeats was commissioned by the American University Consortium, a group of 13 colleges and universities from New York to California.  Composer Ola Gjeilo, originally from Norway, studied composition at Julliard.

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee,
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart’s core.

Eleanor Rigby
Written in 1966 for the album “Revolver,” Eleanor Rigby topped the charts in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.  It is one of the few Lennon & McCartney collaborations that the pair voiced a dispute over creative ownership – third party sources back McCartney’s claim.  The original string arrangement was written by George Henry Martin, often referred to as ”The Fifth Beatle.”

Ah, look at all the lonely people.

Eleanor Rigby, picks up the rice from the church where her wedding has been,
Lives in a dream,
Waits at the window, wearing the face that keeps in a jar by the door,
Who is it for?

All the lonely people, where do they all come from?
All the lonely people, where do they all belong?

Father McKenzie, writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear,
No one comes near,
Look at him working, darning his socks in the night when there’s nobody there,
What does he care?

All the lonely people, where do they all come from?
All the lonely people, where do they all belong?

Eleanor Rigby, died in the church and was buried along with her name,
Nobody came.
Father McKenzie, wiping the dirt from his hands as he walks from the grave,
No one was saved.

All the lonely people, where do they all come from?
All the lonely people, where do they all belong?

‘Round Midnight
Thelonius Monk was an American jazz pianist and composer, responsible for writing some of the enduring standards of the jazz songbook, including: “Blue Monk,” ,”Straight, No Chaser,” “Well You Needn’t,” and of course, “‘Round Midnight.”

It begins to tell, ‘round midnight,
I do pretty well ‘til after sundown;
Suppertime I’m feeling sad,
But it really gets bad, ‘round midnight.

Mem’ries always start, ‘round midnight,
Haven’t got the heart to stand those mem’ries;
When my heart is still with you
And old midnight knows it too.

When some quarrel we had needs mending
Does it mean that our love is ending?
Darling I need you, lately I find
You’re out of my arms, and I’m out of my mind.

Let our love take wing some midnight,
Let the angels sing for your returning;
Let our love be safe and sound
When old midnight comes around.

The World’s Smallest Violin
Composed for show choirs in 2022, this work showcases an excerpt from a violin Concerto by Giovanni Batista Viotti – why is anybody’s guess.  And in case you’re wondering if “show choir” means that you’ll finally see members of MSW doing choreography, there’s no need to wonder – the answer is an emphatic, “no.”  Disappointed? 

Cry me a river, and I’ll play you a song
On the world’s smallest violin.
Life handed you a lemon, what a crying shame;
I’ve got an orchard full of lemon trees and not a nickel to my name.

So go and cry me a river,
I just can’t give ‘er any sympathy, c’est la vie
Now you’re just a regular schmuck like me!

And here’s a teeny, tiny violin and bow
And here’s a super schmaltzy melody I know
So let those tears flow while I put on a show
With the world’s smallest violin.

Pick yourself up and start again!
…it happens every now and then.

Yes, I’m a virtuoso on this instrument of mine.
It’s not a Stradivarius, but it’ll do just fine.
So let me serenade you as you weep and wail and whine
On the world’s smallest violin.

Abide
This evening, Master Singers is premiering the final movement of Edward Tyler’s An American Requiem, which will receive its full premiere next Spring.  An American Requiem is both a remembrance of those killed in mass and school shootings, and a condemnation of the system that makes these tragic events all too commonplace in American society.  The bulk of the work was written in July of 2023, with this Epilogue written in April of 2024.  The poem is the voice of one of the dead, speaking some final words of comfort to those they have left behind.  

Wait with me one more minute,
One more hour, one more day, one more lifetime.
I’m so sorry I must leave you now, but my spirit will abide.

Cast me out upon the waters, Let the current carry me.
Let not your heart be troubled.
In your voice I’ll always be.
For this journey has no ending, and the stars will be my guides.
Let your soul begin its mending.
In your voice, my song abides.

I hear your laughter through this darkness,
It leads me back where I belong.
I’ll protect you while you slumber, keep you safe until the dawn.

Walk with me out in the forest, Let me rest beneath the trees.
Let not your heart be troubled.
In your laugh I’ll always be.
For this journey has no ending, and the stars will be my guides.
Let your soul begin its mending.
In your laugh, my joy abides.

You’ll continue on life’s journey,
I sleep ‘neath earth, and wave, and sky,
But in these quiet, peaceful moments, I’ll be with you, by your side.

With the winds up in the mountains, I will soar, forever free.
Let not your heart be troubled.
In your life I’ll always be.
For this journey has no ending, and the stars will be my guides.
Let your soul begin its mending.
In your life, my soul abides.

Ubi Caritas
Written in 2022, Ubi Caritas was commissioned by the Hickory Choral Society in honor of their founding conductor’s 43 years of service.  The Latin text is used for the Mandatum during Maundy Thursday services.  It commemorates both the first Eucharist and the washing of the disciples’ feet.  Composer Dan Forrest has used the entire first stanza of the Latin text, and then added three lines from the third stanza to serve a bridge between repetitions.