We Who Would Be Great And Kind: A Composition For Mezzo

Soprano And Ensemble

I had liked her poetry all along but never had the chance to work with her.

We started working right away, and she handed me this rough 'account' among other poetry of hers: that triggered my fantasy! I picked it up and just 'cut' the four pages into just one, to fit the rather short composition. But Cecile wanted to rework on it. Just two days later, we met for coffee and she gave me her poem to read: I was truly impressed! Here, in front of me, stood a masterpiece of a poem!

The story of the account is this: there was apparently a small group of young girls (pre-adolescent ages) living with the merchants. When the death of their 'master' is announced, the girls are asked the question: "who is going with him?" A young girl springs up and shouts: "me!". Is it really a sacrifice? Is the young girl a 'willing offer'? Cecile's adaptation of the text is masterful: there is darkness, there is love, there is ambition (the girl wants to be a 'star'!). In the background of the actual collaboration, the Bosnia war was going on: Cecile is a very sensitive person and reacted accordingly. I tried to pay tribute to this amazing poem by choosing a 'dark' instrumentation and two amazing singers.

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