By: Justin Robinson

Eric Whitacre

About EricEric Whitacre is an

American composer, conductor and lecturer, and is one of the most popular performed composers of the twentieth century.

Whitacre was born on January 2, 1970 in Reno, Nevada.

Currently, he has 44 published pieces and has sold over a million copies.

SchoolingUniversity of Las

VegasJuilliard School –

Master’s DegreeHila Plitmann – Wife

Major WorksWater NightCloudburstSleepLux AurumqueA Boy and a Girl

Virtual Choir

My favorite composer.Inspiration through my choral experiences

in high school and other places.He is younger and appeals to a younger

generation: 20th-21st century audience.

Why I chose Eric Whitacre for my presentation…

For the composition history and listening guide in this presentation I will discuss 3 of Whitacre’s major pieces.

Water Night

Lux Aurumque

Cloudburst

Composition History

Water NightWhitacre’s earliest work.

Written in 1995.

Splits into 14 different parts.

The words are like a poem.

Song dedicated to a good friend and mentor of Whitacre, Dr. Bruce Mayhall.

Lux AurumqueWritten in the fall of

2000.Piece is written in

Latin.Received its

premiere at the 2005 conference of the Texas Music Educators Association.

Whitacre dedicated to a close friend, Gary Green.

Cloudburst Written in 1992.

One of Whitacre’s most famous Compositions.

A cloudburst is an extreme amount of precipitation that falls in a short amount of time.

Most of the time cloudbursts only last no longer than a few minutes but are capable of creating flood conditions.

Listening Guide (Water Night)This piece is entirely

acapella.

This piece walks you through a relaxing state of sub consciousness.

The words of the piece are like a poem and the music itself matches the words.

Listen to Water Night

(Click here)

Latin LyricsLux, calida

gravisque pura velut aurum et canunt angeli molliter modo natum.

Light, warm and heavy as pure gold and the angels sing softly to the new-born baby.

Listening Guide (Lux Aurumque)

English Lyrics

Lux Aurumque (continued)Again the words

match the music of this song.

Offers a lot of dynamics.

Programmatic music

Offers a guided imagery through the song.

Listen to Lux Aurumque

(Click here)

Latin Lyrics La lluvia ojos de agua de sombra, ojos de agua de

pozo, ojos de agua de sueño. Soles azules, verdes remolinos picos de

luz que abren astros como granadas. Dime, tierra quemada, no hay agua? Hay

sólo sangre sólo hay polvo, sólo pisadasde pies desnudos sobre la espina?

La lluvia despierta Hay que dormir con los ojos abiertos, Hay

que sonar con las manos Soñemos sueños activos de rio Buscando su cause, sueños de sol soñando sus mundos hay que soñar en voz alta, hay que cantar hasta que el canto eche raíces, tronco, ramas, hay que desenterrar la palabra perdida recordar que dicen sangre, la marea, la tierra y el cuerpo, volver al punto de partida.

The rain ... Eyes of shadow-water eyes of well-water

eyes of dream-water. Blue suns, green whirlwinds, pecks of light

that open pomegranate stars. But tell me, burnt earth, is there no water?

Only blood, only dust, only naked footsteps on the thorns?

The rain awakens... We must sleep with open eyes, We must

dream with our hands we must dream dreams of active rivers Searching for their cause Dreams of the sun dreaming of its worlds we must dream aloud, we must sing till the song casts roots, trunks, branches, birds, stars, we must unearth the lost word, and remember what the blood, the tides, the earth, and the body say, and return to the point of departure

Listening Guide (Cloudburst)

English Lyrics

Cloudburst (continued) This pieces walks you through a

“cloudburst” or strong rainstorm.

Although Whitacre’s pieces are mostly acapella, this piece includes, handbells, drums, windchimes, and cymbals to help with the effect of the thunder and rain.

The vocal parts break into at least 8 parts during the piece.

The choir claps and stomps to make the sound of thunder and rain.

Listen to Cloudburst

(Click here)

Cloudburst lyrics obtained from:

http://www.lyricszoo.com/eric-whitacre-polyphony/cloudburst/

Eric Whitacre biography from the Seattle Choral Company, http://www.seattlechoralcompany.org/PDFs/EricWhitacreBio.pdf

Image 1 Source:

http://www.classicalarchives.com/composer/6227.html

Image 2 Source:

http://blog.bowers-wilkins.com/music/eric-whitacre-top-10-headphone-albums/

Lux Aurumque Lyrics obtained from:

http://www.songs-lyrics.net/so-Eric-Whitacre-lyrics-Light-%26-Gold-lyrics-Lux Aurumque-lyrics-mvcttace.html

MASON, KERRI. "Virtual Reality." Billboard 123.11 (2011): 35. MAS Ultra – School Edition. Web. 13 Feb. 2012.

Ratcliffe, Shirley. "Igniting the Buzz." Choir & Organ 18.6 (2010): 27. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 13 Feb. 2012.

Tscioulcas, Anastasia. "Whitacre's Ace Space." Billboard 118.11 (2006): 56. MAS Ultra - School Edition. Web. 13 Feb. 2012.

Virginia Tech Multimedia Music Dictionary Composer Biographies,

http://www.music.vt.edu/musicdictionary/appendix/composers/W/EricWhitacre.hml

Bibliography