Opening: Forest from Vireo

LISA BIELAWA

Opening: Forest for girls chorus and string quartet

adapted from Episode 1 of the opera Vireo: The Spiritual Biography of a Witch’s Accuser

2015

Commissioned by Grand Central Art Center

©2015 by Lisa Bielawa

Opening: Forest (2015) adapted from Episode 1 of the opera Vireo: The Spiritual Biography of a Witch’s Accuser

NOTE: Vireo: The Spiritual Biography of a Witch’s Accuser is a made-for-TV opera composed by Lisa Bielawa on a libretto by Erik Ehn and directed by Charles Otte, released in 2017 on multiple media platforms by KCET-TV in LA. The eponymous heroine Vireo is a fourteen-year-old girl genius entangled in the historic obsession with female visionaries, as witch-hunters, early psychiatrists, and modern artists have defined them. Opening: Forest is the first scene of the opera, in which a young girl appears as if shoved into existence, walking through a medieval forest outside of Reims, France. She has been sent to collect hot coals for a fire that has gone out at home, and as she wanders through the beautiful spring morning the “forest women” sing to her from all directions, beckoning to her from other realms and realities far from home.

– Lisa Bielawa

TEXT: The beetle intervenes Leaf/leaf The scene is, like you, Alive.

Beetle nerve.

Agitation, shifted leaf The elements of word.

Stop.

-

Erik Ehn

Opening: Forest from the opera Vireo: The Spiritual Biography of a Witch's Accuser Erik Ehn

Lisa Bielawa

Violin I

 Vln. I

 Vln. I



q=84 Relaxed, Intimate                                          

                

mf

gliss.

13

  

p







Vln. I



20

 

   

27

  

f



       



S.

A.

A.

Vln. I



 



p

3

p

 



 



          ff

 



 





  

 

  



p mysterious



oo p mysterious





mf

pp



 



 





  



   mp

3



 



3

 



p mysterious

    

oo p mysterious

  

Copyright © 2015

mf

3

          

Ah

                   

p

          

Ah

oo

 



oo

 mp                               

 

   

 

    

 3                                    

oo

 

p



3





   

  S.  





                                 3

6

 S.  S.

mf

p dolce



3

    

  





 

oo

               3 3

2

 S.   S.



 

mf

 



 mf

   

Ah





     





mf

    

oo

mp

A.

 

Ah

     

 Vln. I   



 



oo

  



A.



Ah

 mp vibrant         

oo

Vln. II



 



 Vc.  



Vla.

A   

Ah



in - ter - venes



in - ter - venes

mf

    

           pizz.

mp pizz.

        mp pizz.

        mp

 

 

3

      3

oo

      

   Ah

oo



 

    

 

p

3

p 3

 Ah





Leaf,

leaf

3

     mf soaring

 

 leaf

 



p

p



Leaf,

q=108 Flexible

  



 

in - ter - venes

             The beet-le

   Vln. I      

The beet-le mp vibrant



 

 



      

 

     

                         

Ah

q=108 Flexible mf soaring

The beet-le

    

  

           

mp vibrant

A.

      3

Ah



A

36



p

a little faster

  3      S.     S.



3

Ah

3

mf

  

      

  

Ah

mp

A.



a little faster



32

Ah





Leaf,

leaf



 

           

        

arco

mf









 

mp

 

     40

S.

  

mf soaring



S.

Vln. I

Vla.



  

mf soaring

 

  

Ah

  

 

Vln. II



    

The scene is, mp crisp

like you, mf

The scene is, mp crisp

like you, mf

The scene is,

like you,

f       

 

mp





mf





  

 

43 mp             S.     

nerve.

Ag - i - ta - tion,shift -ed leaf

    mp                 

S.

Ag - i - ta - tion, shift-ed leaf

A - live.

f

  

A - live.

arco

f

   el - e-ments

el - e-ments of

word. f

 

Vla. Vc.



   of

word



   

mp pizz.



word. f

The el - e-ments of

 p

                         

pizz.

-

word.

nerve.

le

nerve.

le

nerve.

     

   





   of word.



       

Beet

le





The el - e-ments of

        A.                 

 Vln. I  

  

-

    

  





Ag - i - ta - tion, shift-ed leaf

Beet

     

                          Ag - i - ta - tion, shift-ed leaf mp

Vln. II





-

 

   



f

The



Beet



     

The



Beet - le

    

f

mp

A.

 



A - live.

      

      



3

    



A - live.

mf

 



f

mp crisp

        

 

A.

A.

Ah



     

  



f

mf

 

of word mp

  of

   6                f 6 mp  













4

   S. 

Stop!

A.

    

  Vln. I  

word









 

ff



Vla.

Vc.





arco





 



 





 

    

 

ff



 



           

arco

Vln. II



The girl stops

ff

47

        

      







 

mf

 



 

mf

arco



       f



B

poco rit.

  S.   50

mf





 A.   

Vln. II

Vla.

     

   

     

   

Ah p semplice



Ah

B

q=96 Unhurried

Ah

pp

          



         



Oo

Ah

pp

Oo



 Mm



Mm

  



  

 



     

   

         





     

   

         







    

poco rit.

Vln. I

q=96 Unhurried p semplice

 



mp dolce

mp semplice



       Vc.   3

    

  

mp semplice

   p





    

    

      





mp

 S.  56

S.

A.



 

  

 Vln. I   Vln. II

Vla.



  

Look



 

 

     

  





  

 

 





 



  

 

 





      

  

  

  

f

 



 

 

up!



 



 

C Gently Brisker     

f

  



 

                       Vc.   

 

 pizz.

 

              pizz.

mf

     

mp



mp





61

  Vln. I  Vln. II

 







pizz.

    

        pizz.

Vla.

mp

Vc.

       

 

mp

     

            

  

e=e

 

   

 

    p

   p

 

 

arco            

       

arco

p

p



 











 









 







 

 

   



cantabile







    



  S.  

5



6

  Vln. I   69

rall.

  

arco

mp cantabile

 

arco, senza vib

Vln. II

arco, senza vib

 

Vla.

Vc.







senza vib

Slow, Thoughtful

      

  

  



 



  



   





p

  



pp

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ppp

    

 





D

q = 108 Solemn

     S.     Ah

   

 A.             Vln. I    

76

   

  

   

   

  

  

  

 

ff passionate and very sad

ff passionate and very sad

Ah

    f

Vln. II

f

Vla.

    

    Vc.   f

f

       

    

 

   

 

TRANSITION: REPEAT AS NEEDED f---- p

     Ah

   

   

     

   

   

Ah

   

   







 

































  