an eagle flew
text by Sarah Burgoyne
text by Sarah Burgoyne
Watch:
Listen:
Instrumentation:
soprano, viola, flute, and piano
additional arrangement for voice, piano and harp
Premiere:
June 14, 2015: Ariel Downs (soprano), John Pickford Richards (viola), Virginia Backman (flute), Clare Longendyke (piano) at New Music on the Point in Middlebury, VT
August 14, 2015: Patrick Terry (countertenor) Lauren Hayes (harp) and Nick Bonadies (piano) at Janesville Performing Arts Center, Janesville, WI
June 14, 2015: Ariel Downs (soprano), John Pickford Richards (viola), Virginia Backman (flute), Clare Longendyke (piano) at New Music on the Point in Middlebury, VT
August 14, 2015: Patrick Terry (countertenor) Lauren Hayes (harp) and Nick Bonadies (piano) at Janesville Performing Arts Center, Janesville, WI
About:
an eagle flew takes its text from the subtly evocative poem "an eagle flew in the sun again but it didn't mean the same" by Montreal-based poet Sarah Burgoyne. This setting presents a series of snapshots — memories contemplating on loss, nostalgia, resentment, disappointment and acceptance.
text from "an eagle flew in the sun again and it didn't mean the same"
i've seen loss bless you
i felt everything but envy
yet here you are at the edge of the sea
with nothing worth reporting
nothing to replace
your memories of the farm
the nervous thousand-palmed birches
the fortress your sister made of rocks
nothing will suffice
the sun sets on only a few trees
and the great grey owl flies headlessly onward
the days go by
and every vision
comes to nothing
you left the ocean behind
but the river could have led you
through the valley
-Sarah Burgoyne
Get Sarah's book here!
an eagle flew takes its text from the subtly evocative poem "an eagle flew in the sun again but it didn't mean the same" by Montreal-based poet Sarah Burgoyne. This setting presents a series of snapshots — memories contemplating on loss, nostalgia, resentment, disappointment and acceptance.
text from "an eagle flew in the sun again and it didn't mean the same"
i've seen loss bless you
i felt everything but envy
yet here you are at the edge of the sea
with nothing worth reporting
nothing to replace
your memories of the farm
the nervous thousand-palmed birches
the fortress your sister made of rocks
nothing will suffice
the sun sets on only a few trees
and the great grey owl flies headlessly onward
the days go by
and every vision
comes to nothing
you left the ocean behind
but the river could have led you
through the valley
-Sarah Burgoyne
Get Sarah's book here!
I performed a solo viola adaptation of this work outside at the ACRE residency in Steuben, WI in 2015.