Bandyrowe
Irish folk song; arr. Susan Brumfield
The "Kitty alone" refrain found in this song is also found in "Uncle Rat Went Out to Ride," a version of "The Frog's Courtship". The song's origins definitely appear to be from Ireland, but the version we have now has been heavily influenced through Appalachia and specifically the stylings of folk singer Jean Ritchie. At one time the song might have been used as a nursey rhyme or a lullaby, but arranger Susan Brumfield treats it as a whirling, twirling kaleidoscope of sound.
Dr. Brumfield is the founder and Artistic Director of The West Texas Children’s Chorus. She holds a Ph.D. in Music Education from the University of Oklahoma. Dr. Brumfield is known for her work as a teacher, author, composer and conductor.
会津磐梯山 (Aizu Bandai-san)
Japanese folk song; arr. Hiroshi Ishimaru
Min’yō (民謡) are traditional Japanese folk songs, interwoven with the reality of daily life and handed down from generation to generation. In Fukushima Prefecture, perhaps the most famous of all min’yō is Aizu Bandai-san (会津磐梯山), a traditional melody singing the praises of Mount Bandai, a large volcanic mountain in the northern part of the area. The song also delivers a message to children on how not to live their lives — in this case to learn from the mishaps of Mr. Ohara Shosuke (小原庄助さん), who has lost all his fortune due to idleness and drinking.
Arranger Hiroshi Ishimaru (1922–1998) was a conductor and composer who advanced the level of Japanese choral music in much the same way as Bartók, Kodály and Poulenc, who had also collected their own countries’ folk music and created choral compositions from the music.
Bring Me My Shadow
by Matthew Erpelding
Canaan Stanton, solo
Bring Me My Shadow is based on the poem “Three” by Li Bai (701–762), a Chinese poet from the Mid-Tang dynasty. That period of time is oftencalled the “Golden Age of Chinese Poetry” with Li acclaimed as a genius and a romantic figure who took traditional poetic forms to new heights.American scholar Burton Watson states that an important characteristic of Li Bai’s poetry “is the fantasy and note of childlike wonder and playfulness that pervades so much of it.”
Composer Matthew Erpelding holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Luther College in Decorah and completed his DMA in Choral Conducting and Pedagogy at the University of Iowa.
The Star of County Down
Irish folk song; arr. Donald Patriquin
Solos: Holden Boshart, Logan Harswick, Tate Larson
The old Irish ballad Star of County Down features a recognizable pentatonic melody that can be traced back to the eighteenth century. As is typical of many ballads, the lyrics by Cathal McGarvey (1866–1927) focus on a young man seeking the fancy of a young woman, in this case near Banbridge in County Down, Northern Ireland.
Canadian-born composer Donald Patriquin (b. 1938) is known internationally for choral and instrumental arrangements of folk music. Patriquin was a member of the music faculty of McGill University from 1965 to 1996.
Cuatro Baladas Amarillas
by Bob Chilcott
3. Dos bueyes rojos en el campo de oro
4. Sobre el cielo de las margaritas ando
Federico García Lorca (1898–1936) was a Spanish poet and dramatist. Lorca befriended many who were or would become influential artists in Spain (including Salvador Dalí), and grew to be considered part of the “Generation of ’27” — an influential group of avant-garde Spanish poets (first meeting in 1927). Contained within his Obras Completas, Lorca’s Cuatro Baladas Amarillas (translated: “Four Yellow Ballads”) are all poems that feature the color yellow in some respect.
The composer, Bob Chilcott (b. 1955), is one of the most active composers and choral conductors in Britain today. He has been involved in choral music most of his life, from being a chorister in the choir of King’s College (Cambridge) to performing with the world-renown King’s Singers.
Three Madrigals
by Emma Lou Diemer
1. O Mistress mine, where are you roaming?
2. Take, oh, take those lips away
3. Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more!
William Shakespeare’s (1564–1616) plays Twelfth Night (II, ii), Measure for Measure (IV, i), and Much Ado About Nothing (II, iii) provide the text for this set of three small works, collectively titled Three Madrigals. Emma Lou Diemer (b. 1927) is a native of Kansas City, Missouri, and has enjoyed an extensive and illustrious musical and academic career. She is Professor Emerita of Theory & Composition at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Peze Kafé
Traditional Haitian; arr. Sten Källman
Using very few words, Peze Kafé tells the tale of a young boy who is sent to the market with coffee for sale and, somehow, he loses the coffee on the way and is arrested, although we never find out why. He is much more concerned about what his mother will say when he turns up without the coffee than his arrest.
Composer Sten Källman (b. 1952 in Gothenburg, Sweden) is known for his folk music arrangements, focusing on music from Scandinavia, Haiti and the Middle East. Källman first traveled and lived in Haiti in 1970 and has since then returned seveal times. A singer and flutist, he performs regularly with various Scandinavian performing groups and sings with the Gothenburg Chamber Choir as well as the theatrical group Amanda. He also maintains his work as a teacher at the Academy of Music and Drama in Gothenburg.
When Love Wins the Day
Roger Treece & Don Rosler
In 2005, the Chicago Children’s Choir commissioned a new piece for its concert series focusing on America’s struggle for civil rights in the 1950s and 1960s. When Love Wins the Day was the product of that commission — a technically demanding piece combining original lyrics with fragments of speeches from Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Of the piece, lyricist Don Rosler says, “Whether it’s a quest for a simple drink of water at a ‘whites only’ fountain or one’s desire to unroll a dream, passing a torch of truth any distance always involves dissonance, harmony, struggle, exhilaration and a voice as powerful as Dr. King’s to help lead the way.”
Roger Treece is a composer, arranger, producer, and singer who creates music that combines traditional classical elements with jazz, funk, gospel, and world music. Since 1983, Roger has produced and/or arranged over 40 record albums for artists such as Josh Groban, The Manhattan Transfer, Bobby McFerrin, Barry Manilow, The King’s Singers and others.
Special thanks to Mrs. Melanie Spohnheimer for playing the second piano part for this song.
Come Alive (from “The Greatest Showman”)
Benj Pasek & Justin Paul; arr. Mark Brymer
One of the most memorable songs from the 2017 blockbuster movie The Greatest Showman, Come Alive has an inspirational text and captivating melody that combine to create a song that is beloved by young and old. Though the movie had mixed critical reviews, the soundtrack has been almost universally praised. In the United Kingdom it became only the second album in 30 years to be ranked eleven consecutive weeks as number one.
Benj Pasek (b. 1985) and Justin Paul (b. 1985), known together as Pasek and Paul, are an American songwriting duo and composing team for musical theater, films, and television whose works include A Christmas Story, Dear Evan Hansen, and James and the Giant Peach.
Homeland
Gustav Holst; arr. Z. Randall Stroope
Also known as “Jupiter’s Theme” from Gustav Holst’s (1874–1934) The Planets, this patriotic British song was sung at the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer and, tragically, also at her funeral at the request of her sons. Just last month, the song was chosen to start the broadcast of the funeral of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburg. Its inherent noble character and seeming timelessness have made Homeland deeply ingrained in the minds and hearts of people everywhere.
Sir Cecil Spring-Rice (1859–1918), whose text is used in this piece, became Britain's Ambassador to America in 1912. Cecil Spring-Rice served through World War I and truly knew what it meant to love and serve his homeland with unceasing sacrifice.
The arranger of Homeland, Z. Randall Stroope (b. 1953), wrote the second and third stanzas in dedication to his own father who, as a prisoner of war, walked the Bataan Death March in World War II so that his son, and the sons and daughters of others, might celebrate freedom and life to this day.
The text of Homeland transcends any cultural or national boundaries. People throughout history have cherished their ties of blood, language and culture, and fought with their lives to protect them. May we ever value our heritage, and the "homeland" which preserves it to this day.