-
for mezzo-soprano and guitar
(guitar can be supplemented with piano and/or percussion)
by
Justin Henry Rubin
Harvey Music Editions
-
This is a cantata for solo voice and guitar in which the
performers should draw upon their entire spectrum of timbral shades
in order to
achieve a dramatic arc within the course of the piece. The piece
may be performed also with piano and/or percussion (ad lib.
marimba, vibraphone, glockenspiel, etc.)
The original text (by the composer, below) concerns a season in
which an individual finds a unique expressive force from
seemingly
nowhere. This novel idea changes the society only briefly as it
disappears with the same suddenness with which it arose; the
individual as well as the society in which he lives is left with
a vacancy only now apparent because of its loss.
Between the Rosewood and the Underbrush (2002)
Not too long ago by the railroad yard there lived in the
underbrush a young cricket. Basil, unlike the other cricket lads,
owned a guitar
instead of a violin with which to serenade the night,
illuminated by the pale blue halo of the soaring moon. It was on
one uneventful
summer day that Basil continued to play his guitar after
everyone else ceased their musicmaking, from the deep azure of
night into
the dawn of the next bright sunlit morning. The others looked
wearily at their friend as his solo venture continued, but said
nothing at
all. Over the following few weeks, Basil seemed less and less
inclined to pick at the six gentle strings after nightfall and
began to play for
himself further into the day until dusk when he'd put his
instrument away. Everyone watched as his guitar began to take on
the sun-
bleached sheen of a silverbrown quality. As well, they noticed
his music began to mirror the appearance of his guitar, glowing
with
assurance, and a disposition inspired by the radiance of the
sun. Lyrical vibrations rose from his strings with a weightlessness
never
felt before by the little society of crickets by the railroad
yard.
-
Quite unexpectedly, on a Monday, he slept all through the
morning and into the afternoon, rising only as twilight began to
descend
onto the warm thicket. He took out his guitar and rejoined his
friends, caressing the night with songs of such melancholy
character
that even the most obstinate of hearts would have been affected.
The beautiful airs and songs that he had been playing for the sun
as it
rose and fell had vanished.
The days past in silence, and the evenings returned to be as
they once were. It was as dawn began to break late in the summer,
when
Basil was placing his guitar back in its case, that a friend
noticed the lustrous color the guitar had once projected had begun
to drain
back into the grains of the ever-darkening brown wood. He
stopped and looked deeply into the despondent cricket's eyes,
recalling the
sounds once so new and now nearly forgotten. Together they
waited to see the sun peek over the hills past the distant shadow
of the
railroad yard.
-
&
V
43
43
Mezzo-soprano
Guitar
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1. Singer speaks, "Part one: The Overture", and then begin.
articulate, precise
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Music and text by Justin Henry Rubin (2015)
All Rights Reserved Copyright 2015 Justin Henry Rubin Printed in
U.S.A.WARNING: No part of this work may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical,
including photocopying or any information storage and retrieval
system without permission in writing from the
publisher.Unauthorized reproduction, in whole or in part, is a
violation of the U.S. Copyright Laws.
Between the Rosewood and the UnderbrushCommissioned by The Dream
Songs Project: Alyssa Anderson, mezzo-soprano and Joseph Spoelstra,
guitar
This commission was made possible by the voters of Minnesota
throughgrants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the
Metropolitan Regional Arts Council,
thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural
heritage fund.
-
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gracefully, gentle
2. Singer speaks, "Part two: Arietta - Introduction to Basil.",
and then begin.
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gracefully, gentle
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42
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then begin.
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42
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44
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201
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42
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211
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8. Guitarist speaks, "Part eight: Changes in disposition.", and
then begin.[In this section, notes marked with an 'x' indicate
where the mezzo should begin speaking.]
F
# n n # n b
b # # #
con poco rubato
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"Lyrical vibrations rose from his strings..."
j j # n n b
sim.
j j # n n n b
&
V
217
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b # # #
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-
&
V
223
n # n
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n # n# n
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"Quite unexpectedly, on a Monday, he slept allseconda volta:
a tempo
# n n # n b
&
V
229
b # # #
through the morning and into the afternoon...
n n # n #
...rising only as twilight began to descend onto the warm
thicket."
b # # #
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&
V
235
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# n n # n b
&
V
241
b #
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caressing the night with songs of such melancholy character
# n n # n b b #n#
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affected."
# n n # b n # n # b
n # n # b n
-
&
V
247
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# n n # n b
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n # # n
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a tempo
n n # n #
&
V
253
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dim.
b . J
b n. J
&
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43
43
42
42
261
# j#
9. Guitarist speaks, "Part nine: Arietta - Late summer.", and
then begin. p
p
# The days past in
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n
.#lence,
j # j#
n
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&
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43
43
42
42
2673
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Mezzo concludes: "The beautiful airs and songs that he had been
playing for the sun as it rose and fell had vanished..."
-
&
V
43
43
2733
It was as dawn be -
j #j#
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j # j#
n
&
V
42
42
43
43
279
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that a friend
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&
V
42
42
43
43
285
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&
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42
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291
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&
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43
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297
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42
42
43
43
42
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303
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310
WW
"He stopped and looked deeply into the despondent cricket's
eyes,
10. Singer speaks, "Part ten and closing: The sun sets over the
railroad yard.", and then begin
WW#
...recalling the sounds once so new and now nearly
forgotten."
&
V
312
WW
"Together they waited to see the sun peek over the hills...
WW#
...past the distant shadow of the railroad yard."
-
V 43314
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# n # n
articulate, precise
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