Possible Lullabies (1997)
Soprano and Guitar
Commissioned by: Hope Wechkin
Premiere: May 1998, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Hope Wechkin, soprano, Tom Baker, guitar.
Notable Performances:
**November 2000, Grosvenor Chapel, London, England: Lucy Paddam, soprano, Michael Partington, guitar.
** July 2000, Lake Chelan Bach Festival, Chelan WA: Leslie McEwen, soprano, Michael Partington, guitar.
**April 2000, BSU Composer Series, Morrison Center for the Performing Arts, Boise, ID: Laura Rushing-Raynes, soprano, Michael Partington, guitar.
**March 1999, Meany Hall, Seattle, WA: Carmen Pelton, soprano, Michael Partington, guitar.
**April 1999, Northwest Guitar Festival at Morrison Center for the Performing Arts, Boise, ID: Katy Greenleaf, soprano, Michael Partington, guitar.
**May 2017, Chapel Performance Space, Seattle, WA: Michael Partington, guitar; Cherie Hughes, soprano.
PROGRAM NOTES
Commissioned by soprano Hope Wechkin, this set of songs for guitar and soprano is based on poetry by Lorca.
The poet wrote about the mysteries of the Spanish lullaby:
"Two rhythms are needed, the physical rhythm of the cradle or chair and the intellectual rhythm of the melody. The mother fits together these rhythms, one for the body and one for the hearing, using various measures and silences. She blends them until she finds the very tone capable of enchanting the child. Spain uses its very saddest melodies and most melancholy texts to darken the first sleep of her children... not only to put the child to sleep, but to wound his sensibilities at the same time."
Though these three poems were not intended by Lorca as texts for lullabies, they evoke the spirit expressed above, and contain musical, as well as textual rhythms appropriate for such a lullaby.