London
For Baritone and Piano
Music by Luciano Williamson (b. 1996) Lyrics from the poem by William Blake (1757 - 1827)
London I wander thro' each charter'd street, Near where the charter'd ames does ow. And mark in every face I meet Marks of weakness, marks of woe. In every cry of every man, In every infant's cry of fear, In every voice, in every ban, e mind-forg'd manacles I hear: How the chimney-sweepers cry Every blackning church appalls, And the hapless soldier's sigh Runs in blood down palace walls. But most thro' midnight streets I hear How the youthful harlot's curse Blasts the new-born infant's tear, And blights with plagues the marriage hearse. - William Blake
Detail from the original manuscript
Performance time: 4'30" e London Blake would have known was a rapidly expanding, evolving cultural and commercial hub, and the capital of the world-leading British Empire. Perhaps it is because of this that the imagery Blake conjures up in this poem is so disturbing, as he paints London not as a progressive modern metropolis, but rather a place of misery and pain, where the proletariat must pay for the lifestyles of the bourgeoisie. e harmonic language in this setting is discordant, making extensive use of whole-tone and octatonic scales, as well as bitonal elements. Constantly changing time signatures never let the music settle, until the nal, drawn-out semi-resolution.
3
London
For Baritone and Piano
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Copyright © 2015 Luciano Williamson. All rights reserved. lucianowilliamson@hotmail.com
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Music by Luciano Williamson (b. 1996)
∏∏∏∏∏
Lyrics from the poem by William Blake (1757 - 1827)
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