Mandolin Songs
(2014) 7 min.
soprano, mandolin
Text by William Shakespeare, Thomas Moore, Conrad Aiken
Notes
From three different centuries, these texts share a strikingly similar perspective on the mysterious power of the plucked string. In the words of William Shakespeare, Thomas Moore, and Conrad Aiken, the mandolin and lute reach into the depths of our souls, alter our perspectives on the world around us, and, most importantly, inspire song.
Mandolin Songs is dedicated to Gwendolyn Lytle and Joti Rockwell, whose music making is as inspiring as the poetry.
Lyrics
I.
Orpheus with his lute made trees,
And the mountain tops that freeze,
Bow themselves when he did sing:
To his music plants and flowers
Ever sprung; as sun and showers
There had made a lasting spring.
Every thing that heard him play,
Even the billows of the sea,
Hung their heads, and then lay by.
In sweet music is such art,
Killing care and grief of heart
Fall asleep, or hearing, die.
–William Shakespeare (1564- 1616)
II.
I give thee all--I can no more--
Tho' poor the offering be;
My heart and lute are all the store
That I can bring to thee.
A lute whose gentle song reveals
The soul of love full well;
And, better far, a heart that feels
Much more than lute could tell.
Tho' love and song may fail, alas!
To keep life's clouds away,
At least 'twill make them lighter pass,
Or gild them if they stay.
And even if Care at moments flings
A discord o'er life's happy strain,
Let Love but gently touch the strings,
'Twill all be sweet again!
–Thomas Moore (1779-1852)
III.
The girl in the room beneath
Before going to bed
Strums on a mandolin
The three simple tunes she knows.
How inadequate they are to tell how her heart feels!
When she has finished them several times
She thrums the strings aimlessly with her finger-nails
And smiles, and thinks happily of many things.
–Conrad Aiken (1889-1973)
Publication
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