1 / 16
Small Ensemble
2018
Double Bass
Drum Set
Electric Guitar
Piano
Soprano
- Program Notes
- This piece was inspired by Ernest Hemingway’s short story of the same name, part of his collection entitled Men Without Women, published in 1927. The story depicts two World War I soldiers on the Italian front. One of the soldiers, Signore Tenente, refuses to sleep while it is dark outside for fear of losing his soul. Hemingway describes various mental exercises Tenente performs in an effort to stay awake. I found the story engrossing and the writing to be some of the most beautiful prose I have read. As the text was neither poetry nor verse, it was a challenge to set rhythmically, (hopefully) achieve a coherent statement that was practical for a vocalist, while also capturing the mixed feelings of fatigue, fear, and desperation Tenente must have experienced. The music attempts to depict the night’s quiet, persistent allure drawing the characters inexorably toward sleep. The vocal line is meant to float, somnambulant, over, around, and through the unrelenting pulse of the music like Tenente’s consciousness drifting perilously close to sleep, but never quite succumbing to its gentle beckon.
- Record Label
- N/A
- Performer Credits
- Kamala Sankaram, Drew Amendola, Red Wierenga, Jim Whitney, Brian Adler
- Publisher
- Uncitizen Music
- External Links