Rising – Lang, just (after song of songs)
David Lang – just (after song of songs)
Sunrise, Wednesday March 25
The new flowers on these trees are grateful to have the Sun rise again today. Maybe they thought it wouldn't come back: (They're not old enough to know it's been doing this for a long time.) They're just concerned with making something out of nothing – food out of Light. Amazing!
Good morning, Forsythia!
"Something from nothing" is what composers do, and we're the grateful recipients. But not every new choral work is written for us! Today's Rising is one of those - another David Lang work, written for others.
We began Rising last Monday with a movement from David's the little match girl passion in which he distilled the words of an aria of Bach down to the essence: "See my tears fall." In today's work just (after song of songs), he puts the entirety of Song of Songs (still riffing on Love this week @ Rising) through a kind of sieve and strains it down to pronouns, nouns, a conjunction, and one adverb: "just." No verbs. No actions. No leaning forward. David writes: "I listed everything personal or owned that is attributed to the man and to the woman. To clarify who is speaking I started every phrase of his with 'just your' and every phrase of hers with 'and my.' It is interesting that in a text about a love that is shared there are only seven instances of 'our.'"
your. my. our.
and.
just.
my beloved.
When the women of The Crossing recorded just (after song of songs), we discovered that the whole success of it relies on how we breath together. That's not unusual in choral music, but getting the right feel of oneness and the strange balance of calm and urgency in just (after song of songs) depends on the length of each breath and – therefore, where it lies in the prior beat - in order to achieve what David's score directs to be "quiet, hypnotic and inwardly radiant; as if singing to one's self."
In this live recording from Month of Moderns 2018, we can hear, as the "performance" develops, why we love to sing works like this. It's a little study in "how we work together." We begin, perhaps without complete clarity of intent; we gradually settle in and the intent is refined - things become simpler, and then the whole room settles and is quiet. From there, we find a groove that could go on and on. Not enough nouns to fill Time. A bond that could last, well, just forever.
Coffee! Wellness.
- The Whole Team @ The Crossing
just (after song of songs)
words and music by David Lang
recorded in concert at The Month of Moderns
June 9, 2018 at the Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill
audio by Paul Vazquez of Digital Mission Audio Services
video art by Dan Cole
just is dedicated to Amy Podmore and Frank Jackson
* * *
just your mouth
just your love
just your anointing oils
just your name
just your chambers
just your love
and my mother’s sons
and my own vineyard
and my soul
just your flock
just your companions
just your kids
just your cheeks
just your neck
just your couch
and my perfume
and my beloved
and my breasts
and my beloved
and my love
just your eyes
and my beloved
our couch
our house
our rafters
and my love
and my beloved
just your shadow
just your fruit
just your banner over me
just your left hand
just your right hand
and my beloved
and my beloved
our wall
and my beloved
and my love
and my fair one
and my love
and my fair one
and my dove
just your face
just your voice
just your voice
just your face
our vineyards
and my beloved
just your flock
and my beloved
and my bed
and my soul
and my soul
and my soul
and my soul
any my mother’s house
just your sword
just your mother
just your wedding
just your heart
and my love
just your eyes
just your veil
just your hair
just your teeth
just your lips
just your mouth
just your cheeks
just your veil
just your neck
just your two breasts
and my love
and my bride
and my heart
and my sister
and my bride
and my heart
just your eyes
just your necklace
just your love
and my sister
and my bride
just your love
just your oils
just your lips
and my bride
just your tongue
just your garments
and my sister
and my bride
just your shoots
and my garden
and by beloved
and my garden
and my sister
and my bride
and my myrrh
and my spice
and my honeycomb
and my honey
and my wine
and my milk
and my heart
and my beloved
and my sister
and my love
and my dove
and my perfect one
and my head
and my locks
and my garment
and my feet
and my beloved
and my hand
and my heart
and my beloved
and my hands
and my fingers
and my beloved
and my beloved
and my soul
and my beloved
just your beloved
just your beloved
and my beloved
just your head
just your locks
just your eyes
just your cheeks
just your lips
just your arms
just your body
just you legs
just your appearance
just your speech
and my beloved
and my friend
just your beloved
and my beloved
just your garden
just your flock
and my beloved
and my beloved
just your flock
and my love
just your eyes
just your hair
just your teeth
just your cheeks
and my dove
and my perfect one
and my mother
and my fancy
and my prince
just your feet
just your rounded thighs
just your navel
just your belly
just your two breasts
just your neck
just your eyes
just your nose
just your head
just your flowing locks
just your breasts
just your breasts
just your breath
just your kisses
and my beloved
just your desire
and my beloved
and my love
our doors
and my beloved
and my mother’s breast
and my mother
and my pomegranates
just your left hand
just your right hand
and my beloved
just your mother
just your heart
just your arm
our sister
and my breasts
just your eyes
and my vineyard
and my very own
and my self
just your voice
and my beloved