Purgatory Branch (Winter) for mezzo-soprano and bassoon
Thomas J. Dempster (BMI)
Copyright Što2015 Thomas J Dempster :: All Rights Reserved This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com purchase performance copies.
Please report all performances of this work to BMI (Broadcast Music Incorporated). Visit the composer’s website at www.thomasdempster.com
This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.
Purgatory Branch (Winter) for mezzo-soprano and bassoon
Thomas J. Dempster
West Columbia, SC January – February 2015
Copyright Š 2015 Thomas J Dempster
This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.
Purgatory Branch (Winter) (2015) – Duration: ca. 4 minutes Text (by Thomas Dempster): Frost on towy blades glistens as the Earth yawns And takes its leave once touched by the sun; A single breeze drifts through my fingers, glancing the trees, Shivering in pallid and blank morning light. Cold comes knocking, tapping, On the bones of stubborn cattle and solitary crows perched on tufts of hay The creek keeps moving, tender whispers between the fields disappearing into the shadows of the pines
Program Notes Purgatory Branch is the name of a small creek in northwestern Lee County, NC, not far from where I spent my adolescence. The name is evocative of the space one finds oneself in among rural places, held between the wild and the desolately human. Close to where I grew up, a creek flowed between two large tobacco fields before disappearing into pine forests, reemerging among fields now fallow and overgrown with scrub and grasses. The real Purgatory Branch area once held a small, run-down church, a small cluster of mobile homes, and farms and woods. Twenty-five years later, it has been subjugated by a highway bypass and suburban sprawl. My poem, the lyrics for this song, is meant to be an impressionistic memorial of a December morning gazing across fields covered in frost under the milky, pale sunrise, light at once familiar and unsettling.
Performance Notes The song should be sung somewhat freely, the performers acting in consort as though a light, cold breeze. The singer, at the end of the song, should allow for certain marked syllables (those marked with X noteheads) to become unvoiced whispers or hisses (if the s is extended, marked by “sss”). For the bassoonist, in measures 30 and 31, in case the performer is unfamiliar with the notation: the repeated G pitch class should be reattacked quickly, with attacks slowing down. For this gesture (paired with “knocking”) the exact number of “knocks” isn’t as important as it is to convey the gesture. Likewise, the gesture should play out before the singer continues (particularly in m. 31). This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.
Purgatory Branch (Winter) Thomas J. Dempster Text: Thomas J. Dempster Distant; flexible q = c 72
& 44
Mezzo-Soprano
& 44
∑
∑
œ œ œ- b œ œ œ b œ œ œ ? 44 Œ 3 ‰ Œ ˙. J 4 F & œ.
10
Mezzo
glis
-
j j #œ œ œ.
-
-
‰
tens
as the Earth
? ‰ #œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ P
45 ˙
14
Mezzo
F
& œ
And
? b œ- .
14
Bsn.
‰Œ
its
œ.
œ œ œbœ œ œ 5
F
˙ œ . œj 44
œ
44 Œ
Œ
the
sun
44 Œ
# œ œ œ
P
œ. œ œ ‰ 45 J œ œ. œ J P
U U 3
once touched by
Œ
blades
p 54 œ œ œ 3
œ
œ œ Œ
43 ‰ œj œ œ œ p F 3
leave
yawns
‰ œ
j œ œ œ œ œ. œ ˙ takes
44
∑
44 ˙ .
on tow - y
43 ˙
œ J ‰ Œ
10
Bsn.
œ œ œ. 3
P legato; lontano 54 j # ˙ œ ‰ ‰ œj Frost
5
Bsn.
43
∑
5
43
∑
5
46
∑
j œ .. # œ , # œ œ œ œ # œ œ .. œ#˙ œ œ œ N œ . œ . œ- 4 3 R œ . Jœ 46 R œ J 4 4
#˙ œ œ œ œœ ? 44 5 Z P
Bassoon
Mezzo
∑
œ F
˙
43
# œ œ #œ œ œ Œ œœ
43
Copyright © 2015 Thomas Dempster performance copies. This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to Jpurchase
2
3 œ &4 J
17
Mezzo
? 43
17
Bsn.
‰
Œ
Œ
-. œ # œ œ œ#œ œ œ 5
œœ
5
& 44 # œ œ . œ # œ fin
-
gers,
? 44 ˙
20
Bsn.
& œ œj ‰ Œ
˙
Mezzo
? Œ #œ œœœœœ œ F
23
Bsn.
3
26
Mezzo
& #œ
3
blank
B
26
Bsn.
˙
29
Mezzo
&
#˙
# œ- œ # œ
23
3
U
Œ
œ
54 ˙
43
˙
-
gle breeze
∑
45
œ #œ #œ œ œ.
#œ
, # œ-
π
, - œ œ # œ œ œ œ # œ 43 F3 piangendo3
drifts
through
# œ- œ œ-
œ
œ J‰ Œ
44
sotto voce
P
#œ #œ
glan
œ #œ -
cing
œ aœ
the
trees,
œ
?
j # œ œ3 œ # œ œ œ # œ œ- œ- 44 œ œ # œ œ œ #œ œ Œ œ œ œ œ 3 3 3 F luminous F
π 118 œ .
A tempo, come prima
œ J
comes
œ J
œ œœ 3
œ
Œ
45
Œ
45
knock - ing
œ N œ # œ- #Uœ- œ- - Œ 118 ‰ ‰ Bsn. œ œ. œ. œ. œ. œ. œ. œ. œ. 3 f P for performance. 3 This score is not licensed Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies. ?Œ
my
j #œ
Cold
29
# œ œ # œ-
œ 44 J
œ œ. œœ # œ œ# œ Œ #œ 45 5 P F S S P F 3 3 j Œ 46 œ # œ œ Œ œ œ œ œ ‰ œ ˙ # ˙ #œ Shiv' - ring, shiv' - ring in pal - lid and Ÿ ~~ - , - Ÿ ~~~ œ >œj ˙ j ‰ 6 # œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œJ ‰ B ˙ . œ 4 p f frozen Brighter, a little faster U f 4 ∑ ‰ 4 œ œ œ.
morn - ing light
∑
A sin
œ. œ
cold; senza vib.
20
Mezzo
5 p œ 5 4 ‰ # Jœ œ œ œ œ œ
Purgatory Branch (Winter)
n.
& 45
31
Mezzo
œ œ
U
œ
colla parte
œ
knock
-
,P œ.
ing
tap
Purgatory Branch (Winter)
#œ.
œœ œ -
-
-
ping
tap -
œ ˙ J
-
3
44
Œ
- ping
U œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœœœ‰ œœ 4 ‰ œ ‰ 4 œ œ œ œ . œ. œ. œ. œ. œ. œ. œ. F staccato f f 3 33 #˙. j œ œ 4 # œ œ œ &4 œ 85 œ œ œ œ œ 44
? 45
31
Bsn.
Mezzo
tap
? 44
33
Bsn.
œœ
-
ping
#œ œ œ œ œ œ
& 44 # œ .
36
Mezzo
cat
? 44
36
Bsn.
f ˙
39
Mezzo
&
-
Mezzo
of
œœ f
œ œ #œ œ œ œ
œœ
‰ # œj 43 œ. . œ. . œ. . n œ. .
tle
and
stub
on
tufts
∑
45
of
ƒ ˙ 45
∑
5 Œ 4 #œ œ œ 3
œ >f 43
>œ . # œ - œ- . œ U œ œ œ ? 43 J Œ 45 œ- 43 ˙ œœ J P 5
∑
44
born
œ~~~ # œ ˙ œ œ œ œ ‰ œ. œ. ‰ œ. œ. Œ 44
∑
hay
46 Œ ˙ P
-
crows
45
-
œ œ œ œ 85 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ‰ 44
œ œ œœ
sol - i - tar - y
P tranquil œ # œ # œ 46 N ˙ œ Œ
? ‰ œ. Œ œ œ ‰ J .. & 43
bones
œœœœœœ ‰
œ œ J
39
43
œœ
the
>œ œ œ >œ œ œ 5 œœœœœ œ œœœ œ œ œ‰ 3 4 œœœœœœ 4 œœ > > f
perched
Bsn.
On
∑
œ # œ œ
>œ
43
œœ 3 Œ 44 4 # œ- œ- œ œœƒ desperate for warmth f ∑ ∑ 43 46 3
œ-
3
j >œ . œ œ œ . œ ‰ 4 œœœœ œ œ œ 6 3 œ J œœœ J 4 Bsn. 4 œœ 4 3 P This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies. 43
6 &4
P ‰ œj ˙
Œ
∑
48
Mezzo
PU 4 ‰ N œj 4 ˙
Purgatory Branch (Winter)
4
˙
The creek
the creek
Bsn.
Mezzo
mov
? 46
51
Bsn.
Mezzo
-
>œ œœ
? 46
53
& 45 # ˙
œ‰
F
œœ
P
Œ
œœœ
Mezzo
&
# œ- œ- - œ- œ- œ- ˙ 60 œ ? (sss)
Bsn.
3 π lontano
3
-
-
44
P œ.
-
der
œœ 6 #œ œ 4 45
j j œ œ #œ.
dis - ap
-
pear -
45
3
-
ap - pear - ing
44 œ ‰ Œ J
5
Œ
œŒ
dis
? 45 Œ # œ- œ- œ œ œ . œœ J
60
-
œ 4 . 3 œ œ ‰ 4 œ œ ‰ œ œ #œ œ œ 4 œ ‰ 3 p π p pitchless; p 3 meno voce whispered j Œ 44 œ . œ # œ ∑ 46 œ œ œ ˙
56
pitchless; whispered
fields
-
46
œ œ œ #œ
œ 44 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Œ
43 ˙
3
‰ 46
p
ten
œ œ #œ œ œ œœŒ œ
be - tween the
ing
Bsn.
ing,
Œ œ œ #œ ˙
#œ
56
Mezzo
-
3
whis - pers
Bsn.
-
œ œ œ œ œœ Œ œ œ F
& 46 œ
53
-
œ
keeps
œ œ. 44 ‰ U‰ œ bœ
. ? 46 b œ œ œ œ Œ œ œ . œ œ Œ œ ˙ œ ˙ bœ œ bœ œ P p P F F 51 œ bœ ˙ œ 44 # ˙ & 46 ˙ 48
6 4
π
#œ
œ
œ J ‰ Œ
of
in - to the shad - ows
œ œ. #œ œ œœJ
the
#˙
˙ pines
#˙
46 œJ ‰ Œ pitchless; whispered
U
(sss)
This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.
U
∑
ca. 4:00 West Columbia, SC Feb. 18, 2015