Beyond - Bird, Peter

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"A short choral cantata of 3 songs. Accompanied by oboe and piano. These songs, with texts from three different poets, all express a universal human desire for something more; something magical; something beyond this life."

◈ Genre → Cantatas

♯ Key D minor

⁄ Time Signature 4/4

♬ Voicing → SATB

◆ Difficulty

Intermediate

↕ Range A1 – C7

♩ Tempo 100

◷ Duration ~10 min 40 sec

¶ Language → English

Measures 283

Texture Homophonic

Parts 7

Instruments oboe and piano.

Pages 34

CPDL # 74768

Editor Peter Bird

Posted 2023-08-06

License Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike

♫Pitch Ranges

SOPRANO

C#4 – A5

ALTO

A-3 – D5

TENOR

D-3 – G4

BASS

F2 – D-4

Oboe

C4 – F#6

Piano

A1 – E5

¶Lyrics / Text

1. Further North (Peter Bird, 2022) The frosty morning air is sharp as wine. An eagle circles high above the spruce. The tamarack are golden; green the pines. A creek somewhere is rushing fast and loose. It feels like morning in the elder days; old glaciers fade away, and aspens grow. The caribou and Dall pass through to graze; a cabin smokes beyond the river bow. O further North! The noisy world will fade away behind, and leave the aura of eternal things. A body can grow stronger, and a mind can harmonize the song the wild bird sings. ... At Nordkapp in midsummer, in the gyre, the midnight sun projects a golden beam a kittiwake may travel, and a tern. We cannot leave this rock, but only yearn to follow over ocean, air, and fire. 2. Wild swans (Edna St. Vincent Millay, 1923) I looked in my heart while the wild swans went over. And what did I see I had not seen before? Only a question less or a question more; Nothing to match the flight of wild birds flying. Tiresome heart, forever living and dying, House without air, I leave you and lock your door. Wild swans, come over the town, come over The town again, trailing your legs and crying! 3. Finis (Over silent waters...) (Ernest E. Cummings, 1917) FINIS Over silent waters day descending night ascending floods the gentle glory of the sunset In a golden greeting splendidly to westward as pale twilight trem- bles into Darkness comes the last light's gracious exhortation Lifting up to peace so when life shall falter standing on the shores of the eternal god May I behold my sunset Flooding over silent waters