Sportsongs a new look at athletic accomplishment!

Transcription

1 Gwyneth Walker Sortsongs a new look at athletic accomlishment! or Narrator and Piano 1 Analysis o Baseall 2 Holding the Towel Summary By the Pawns The ootall umler

2 2 Sortsongs a new look at athletic accomlishment! duration: 10 0 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sortsongs are dramatizations (narratives with music) on the toic o athletics The oems, y May Swenson and Virginia Hamilton Adair, exlore the intricacies o sort in a knowledgeale, quizzical and sometimes conused (!) manner This oetic aroach to sorts is inused with anciul imagination! In the oening scene, Analysis o Baseall (oem y May Swenson), the narrator exlains to the audience the unction o aseall equiment all, at and mitt Non-athletic associations arise requently Bat waits or all to mateall lirtsdon t kee the date The narrator attemts to catch a ly all hit eyond reach Mitt has to quit in disgrace The elements and details o aseall seem to overwhelm the narrator Yet, there is a oyul conclusion that It s done on a diamond, and or un It s aout home, and its aout run The narrator, roaly not an adventurous swimmer, stands on the each, Holding the Towel while searching the waves or a riend The only clue to locating the riend is an orange athing ca, which the narrator oten conuses with a uoy Many round heads are seen diing, rising, tiing Alas, they are only loats Narrator gives u on the search and leaves the each (doing a mock reast stroke) The game o chess is now descried rom the viewoint o the smallest chess iece in Summary y the Pawns (oem y Virginia Hamilton Adair) With the stage transormed into an imaginary chess oard, the awn (Narrator) takes short stes, moving rom sot to sot irst the lack square, then a white The stes are rigid Yet the awn oserves the more varied movements o the larger ieces While around us with ree gaits move the taller otentates The awn can occasionally dislodge another iece ( remove a man ) Yet, without warning, the awn is knocked rom the oard O, o, o, we go! The ootall umler is ased on May Swenson s charming oem, Watching the ets Lose to Bualo at Shea The oet, not a knowledgeale ootall an, has attended a game with the New York ets at their home ield, Shea Stadium Ms Swenson immediately orms a nurturing ond with the ootall, which she reers to as a leather ay She hugs the all as she runs down the ield, to deliver the ay to a cradle o grass at the goalosts Oh, ut it is knocked away She umles!!! Chastising hersel, she laments, Oh, what a looer and a umler you are She retends to cuddle her leather ay at the goal osts Imagination triumhs over reality as she raises the ootall alot in triumh, accomanied y the Notre Dame Cheer Song! With this ocus on sorts, a narrator with athletic exerience might deliver a suitale and comortale resentation However, a narrator entirely unamiliar with sorts might resent a highly entertaining rendition This would truly e a new look athletic accomlishment! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dr Gwyneth Walker ( 197) is a graduate o Brown University and the Hartt School o Music She holds BA, MM and DMA Degrees in Music Comosition A ormer aculty memer o the Oerlin College Conservatory, she resigned rom academic emloyment in 1982 in order to ursue a career as a ull-time comoser She now lives on a dairy arm in Braintree, Vermont Gwyneth Walker is a roud resident o Vermont She is the reciient o the Year 2000 Lietime Achievement Award rom the Vermont Arts Council as well as the 2008 Athenaeum Award or Achievement in the Arts and Humanities rom the St ohnsury (VT) Athenaeum Walker s catalog includes over 200 commissioned works or orchestra, chamer ensemles, chorus and solo voice The music o Gwyneth Walker is ulished y E C Schirmer o Boston (choral and vocal music) and Lauren Keiser Music (orchestral and instrumental music) urther inormation concerning Gwyneth Walker and her works is availale at wwwgwynethwalkercom ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

3 May Swenson ( ) Sortsongs a new look at athletic accomlishment! or Narrator and Piano Analysis o Baseall Gwyneth Walker During the iano introduction, the NARRATOR comes onstage, wearing a aseall ca and carrying a all, at and mitt These items are (lovingly) laced on stage in ront o the NARRATOR, or the audience to view* Lively q = 180 (q = 60) oyully with slight edal # # # # N N n rit *The erormance o Analysis o Baseall might e esecially entertaining i the Narrator is not very amiliar with aseall! Coyright 2011 y Gwyneth Walker 27 Brainstorm Rd, Braintree VT All Rights Reserved

4 NARRATOR oints to ros, to exlain aseall to the audience Pounds ist into alm, as i rearing to lay It s aout the all, the at, and the mitt Ball hits the at, or it hits mitt Bat doesn t hit all, at meets it Takes a nice, slow ractice swing A U (aside) Ball ounces o at, lies air, or thuds ground (dud) or it its mitt B Narrator moves in time to the music, erhas rounding the asses (running around the ases on stage) a temo (h = 60) rit C Bat waits or all to mate (very short tremolo) Ball hates to take all s ait (slightly longer tremolo) Ball lirts, at s late don t kee the date lirtatiously Walker / Sortsongs

5 5 Ball goes in (thwack) to mitt, and goes out (thwack) ack to mitt (quick, high, ascending clusters) À À À NARRATOR continues activity rom B D a temo (h = 60) oco rit U U E Ball its mitt, ut not all o the time Sometimes all gets hit (ow) when at meets it, and sails to a lace where mitt has to quit in disgrace Walker / Sortsongs

6 6 NARRATOR attemts to catch all, which is hit over the head, eyond reach Narrator is disaointed (a series o short, high gliss ad li) [ta iano ledge, uer end] (as ackground excitement) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ That s aout the ases loaded, aout 0,000 ans exloded* ( ) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (continue taing) NARRATOR icks u all three ros, erhas struggling to hold all at once! NARRATOR dislays each item as mentioned Quickly It s aout the all, the at, the mitt, the ases and the ans Not as quickly It s done on a diamond, and or un Slowly, haily It s aout home, and it s aout run ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ sto taing ( ) / NARRATOR reares G Slower accel *Pianist may um let ist a ew times as a cheer! Walker / Sortsongs

7 7 and then runs around the ases one last time a temo (h = 60) # # N N layully and exits the stage molto rit [all in mitt dislayed rom o stage] short ause 00 Walker / Sortsongs

8 8 May Swenson ( ) Holding the Towel Beore the music starts, NARRATOR comes on stage carrying an orange athing ca The ca is (lovingly) laced at the ront o the stage or the audience to see NARRATOR is holding a large each towel NARRATOR scans the horizon looking or a riend who has gone swimming in the ocean # # # # A lowing (q = 66) 8 6 (as waves) 8 6 # [reading and music aroximately synchronized] You swam out through the oats (as a quiet ackground) # # # # # # simile # # # # your head an orange uoy # # sun - daued # # # # # oing # # # My squint lost you to niling waves # # # rit U # U B I looked or a mast to tilt to glint with your slash ut couldn t see ast the huddled oats C a temo (q = 66) # # # # ~~~~~~~~~~~ # lightly # (as waves oing in the distance) Walker / Sortsongs

9 I ound round heads sun - red diing rising tiing # # ( ) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ # # [ause] [ause] They were tethered loats [high lacknote cluster] À 9 When you dove rom the stoveie uoy in the ar urrow o the channel I was still scanning the neary nowhere - going oats D E a temo (q = 66) # U (as waves) # 8 6 # U # 8 6 # NARRATOR aroximates a reaststroke and swims around the stage diing rising tiing diing rising # # dim # tiing # # # # # # # # # # # # NARRATOR exits the stage, stoing to ick u the orange ca en route diing rising tiing diing rising tiing # # # # U # # # # # Walker / Sortsongs rit slow tremolo (as waves) short ause 1 0

10 10 Summary By the Pawns Virginia Hamilton Adair ( ) [ta iano ledge with oth hands eginning as ar aart as can e comortaly reached, then towards the middle] With energy q = 126 strict temo, as a chess iece (loud enough to e heard without eing arasive) NARRATOR stes on to stage, taking one ste er measure, as a chess awn moving # n # A # # # dim # # Walker / Sortsongs

11 A Soken in rhythm while standing very uright, as a chess awn irst the lack square, # # then a white, # À Moved y some - thing [high whitenote cluster] out o sight, 11 We are start - ed with a ound, Knights and cas -tles all a -round, [cluster] À ( ) B Kings and queens and ( ) ish -os ho - ly! A -ter that - n v v we go rit more slow (rit) ly, - n n a temo # A # Walker / Sortsongs

12 12 Moved y some - thing out o sight # # a more relaxed ose while descriing the other chess ieces While a - round us with ree gaits Move the tall - er C n layully, more reely with slight edal n now uright o - ten - tates Still we awns look straight a - head Walker / Sortsongs A n n # #

13 D lowing gestures descriing the taller otentates moving in ree gaits 1 n with slight edal n A Still we awns no edal look straight a n n - head # # NARRATOR moves rom one square to another on an (imaginary) chess oard (diagonal moves might e included) E Swing rhythm (Â = Ç) (same temo) ( n ) with slight edal n n n Walker / Sortsongs

14 1 n # n # n n n n n [soken reely (not in rhythm) aroximately synchronized with music] Still we awns look straight ahead To encourage us it is said that N N N # awns who reach the utmost square # are as good as monarchs # n # n there Meanwhile awns, i need e, can By slanted ways remove a man # # G n WW W Walker / Sortsongs

15 15 But requently, eore we know What has got us O we long white-note gliss go! H a temo (q = 126) # # # # # But soken quickly, in terror! requently, eore we know What has got us, (many) o, o, o o we I W W W n WW [very high,short, quick glissando] gliss Walker / Sortsongs

16 16 go! a temo [taing as eore] # # irst a lack, # # then a white, # # short ause n Moved y some-thing (whisered) NARRATOR lies o stage (exits arutly) as i eing yanked o a chessoard rit out o sight, [high, clusters] white À À lack Walker / Sortsongs short ause 2 0

17 May Swenson ( ) The ootall umler Watching The ets Lose to Bualo at Shea 17 Suggested ros: ootall helmet, ootall (can e ake, oam ootall), seudo goalosts laced on stage With ravura w U w w w ( scurrying motive) A Lively q = 1 # n n n # n Walker / Sortsongs

18 18 n n n rit, ^ ^ ^ n ^ # ^ v v v NARRATOR runs on stage, wearing a ootall helmet, carrying a ootall with edal a temo, vigorously su Ë ade out ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ë Ë B soken lovingly, while holding a ootall throughout / The eel o that leather ay solid against your sternum, you hug its skull and ottom etween huge huddled shoulders sto It s wraed in your arms and wedged under the hard muzzle o your stuck-out aceguard U U Walker / Sortsongs

19 a temo, a running attern Your thighs uming, you run to deliver the ay to a cradle o grass at the goal osts But it s umed ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (reeat these 2 measures ad li) / ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ / 19 sto arutly rom your arms, and you re mounted as i your ack were leather [high, random, white-note dyads] À À À À À À Your legs cut away, you old, you tumle like a treetrunk [lower, random, white-note dyads] À À À À À À Your rain s or the ground to slit like a leather egg, ut it doesn t NARRATOR takes o helmet and examines it with curiosity U Your helmet takes the concussion Slower ( woly motive) n # n n n # n n Walker / Sortsongs

20 20 C NARRATOR looks u, ollowing the light o an imaginary kicko (as a ootall in light) graceully g loco Sent alot y a leather toe, a rugged leather ay droed rom the sky and (reeat these measures) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (last time) slammed into the sling o your arms g rit loco U U raturously Oh, the eel o that leather undle Oh, what a looer and umler you are, that you couldn t nest it, ( cuddling motive) that you lost and couldn t nurse it, D slow, rocking style Walker / Sortsongs NARRATOR tenderly laces the all on the ground, then kneels or leans over y the ootall long enough to lay it in a cradle o grass at the goalosts (quiet, tender tremolo) w w U w π

21 E a temo, lively 21 lovingly strokes ootall # n n as i a distance n # n cresc raises ootall to the right g g n g g ack down n w Stands u w w # n Walker / Sortsongs # n raises ootall to the let g g g g n # n w w w with edal ack down n and raises the ootall alot, triumhantly! w w # n # n A rit U ƒ U 15 / Total: 10 0 / August 16, 2011 / Braintree, Vermont