Seasonal Attraction (2010)

Seasonal Attraction (2010)

for Mezzo-Soprano and Piano

Seasonal Attraction

I.                   Spring

II.                 Solstice

III.               Summer

IV.               Equinox

V.                 Autumn

VI.               Solstice

VII.             Winter

Lyrics:

I. Spring

purple flower petals

spring through my garden journey

morning as still life

 

III. Summer

summer rain trickles

off her beautiful body

we shiver with love

 

V. Autumn

a black cicada

can whisper evening thunder

a song to the moon

 

VII. Winter

beneath winter ice

a dandelion blossom

would bloom in yellow

Seasonal Attraction is a song cycle which sets four poems with three instrumental interludes. The poems were written using several sets of magnetic refrigerator poetry, and are all loosely constructed haiku. The piece begins with Spring, and as such is constructed around the idea of celebrating new life, although in tribute to my time in Austin some hints of Summer start popping up fairly quickly. Like most of the other interlude movements, the first Solstice takes some material from both Spring and Summer and ties them together. While this movement focuses on the more sharp and piercing attributes of summers in Texas, the actual Summer movement is based around a different part of that season, the mid-summer thunderstorm. Following that, the Equinox symbolizes the gradual and constant change of nature from Summer to Fall. Autumn is kind of a stylistic departure from most of my previous writing, but not completely. It is constructed around the image of some very specific moments that might happen during that season. The second movement entitled Solstice is much more substantial than the previous interludes. The Winter Solstice, December 21st, is known by some to be the most depressing day of the year, at least in part to the fact that it is the day with the least daylight. However, many cultures also celebrate the day for its natural beauty and tranquility. This movement is meant to exist somewhere in between those two ideas. Additionally, the Winter Solstice is my mother’s birthday, and there is a subtle tribute to her in this movement. The final movement in this cycle, Winter, attempts to capture some of the beauty, joy, and excitement that can be frozen in ones memory from this time of year. Like all such things in nature, however, it is often interrupted.