Canadian Voices: The Heart of Night - Margaret King
When I began searching for poetry to set for this project, I was imagining (due to COVID-19) people singing together, apart. I wanted to create music that provided comfort and hope during this period of uncertainty. Fortunately, Bliss Carman’s poem, ‘The Heart of Night’ landed in front of me in a timely fashion. His text is an eloquent expression of how nature can provide nourishment for the soul; it describes the awe, wonder and, ultimately, peace that can be felt when looking up at a beautiful star-filled night sky.
Writing for TTBB is new for me! To date, the majority of my pieces have been designed for treble voices (children’s and adult). I loved exploring the new colour possibilities with the TTBB configuration! I also welcomed and enjoyed the task of writing in only four parts as I typically like to write with multiple divisi.
Excerpt from the score (click to enlarge)
Bliss Carman was a Canadian poet (1861-1929). I admire his works and have also, relatively recently, set his poem ‘The Enchanted Traveller’ (for SSSAAA). As Carman’s text is rich with imagery/metaphor, I wanted to reflect this in my writing as well. Throughout the piece, there is a shifting between vertical alignment and staggered entries of text to express the idea of the whole (night sky/universe/humanity) and the part (star/individual). To create a feeling of expanse, I used widely spaced chords: ‘When all the stars…’ and ‘Lean on the heart…’ and ‘And let love make thee strong’. Verse three and the first half of verse four articulate hope thwarted by doubt. A unison entry of ‘How small a thing is man’ builds to full parts on ‘vast, …hope or plan or dream’ and then dwindles back down to unison on ‘his dream could last’. Doubt and fear are expressed with the choice of darker, minor tonality chords. Awe is expressed not directly on the word ‘awe’ but on ‘The stars’ at the beginning and end and by colouring ‘majesty’ and ‘The stars above the hill!’. The piece closes with a tranquil reiteration of the text ‘Lean on the heart of night.’
Pro Coro Canada Quartet (from left) Caleb Nelson, Anthony Wynne, Graeme Climie, and Michael Kurschat
Michael Zaugg, Conductor
During the pandemic, writing has been different. Finding the solitude necessary to create has been challenging. I find myself plagued with questions regarding purpose. Questioning my purpose is not new but the frequency of this question has certainly increased! A lot of my time on this planet has been spent collaborating with and writing for choirs! Where will we go from here? Often it feels futile to continue to write as there is no foreseeable end date to this virus and the restrictions it demands, however I realize creativity is ubiquitous; we must tap it and hope for the future.
Like the stars, we are singular and dynamic, and we also belong to something much greater. How wonderful it will be when people can lift up their voices and sing freely together in-person again! In the meantime, ‘Lean on the heart of night and let love make thee strong!’
The Heart of Night - Margaret King
Canadian Poet Laureate Bliss Carmen (1861-1929)
The Heart of Night
When all the stars are sown
Across the night-blue space,
With the immense unknown,
In silence face to face.
We stand in speechless awe
While Beauty marches by,
And wonder at the Law
Which wears such majesty.
How small a thing is man
In all that world-sown vast,
That he should hope or plan
Or dream his dream could last!
O doubter of the light,
Confused by fear and wrong,
Lean on the heart of night
And let love make thee strong!
The Good that is the True
Is clothed with Beauty still.
Lo, in their tent of blue,
The stars above the hill!
-Bliss Carmen
Canadian Voices - Edmonton
Watch the entire Canadian Voices Series on Pro Coro TV