I ask the orchids (2019)

voice, violin, piano – 18 min

I ask the orchids (2019) for solo voice, violin, and pianoby Madeline BarrettMovement I. La terreKim Nguyen, soprano voiceChloé Tardif, violinMy Tran, piano

Program Notes

The concept for this piece came to me after I read Thich Nhat Hanh’s “The Sun in My Heart”, an excerpt from his book, Love in Action: Writings on Nonviolent Social Change. In this excerpt, he explains the concept of interbeing: the idea that all life in the universe is connected and forms one organic whole. Every part of this whole affects every other part. Hanh states, “…We have to remember that our body is not limited to what lies within the boundary of our skin”. These ideas formed the basis of I ask the orchids. Once I had solidified this idea in my mind, I asked Jared Murphy to compose a poem that I could use as the text for the song cycle. The text was written in English and translated to French, which is the version I set for this cycle. Each song has its own unique character while maintaining a single thread throughout the work, a metaphor for interbeing itself.

 

Text

Je demande les orchidées

 

La terre est une explosion silencieuse de rouge-orange et jaune-verte

Feuilles tremblantes d’aspen frissonne-murmur des “au revoirs” à leur frères et soeurs comme

Leur système racinaire couche forte dans le sol frais.

 

Je suis la forêt; dans ses profondeurs, je me sens en sécurité.

Je veux mémoriser l'histoire de la brise et gagner la confiance des arbres. Je demande aux orchidées de m'apprendre leur symétrie.

 

 Les aiguilles de pin sirotent la lumière du soleil finale

Chlorophylle, chlorophylle

 

Alors que le soleil baisse, les pics se baignent à l’Alpenglow

Renard et Hibou commencent à rôder chaque nuit

Nous inter-existons.

Je vois avec les rayons de la lune; les arbres sont mes poumons.

Je ressens un million d'étoiles comme des taches de rousseur sur le visage d'un ami.

J'entends le hurlement d’un Coyote avec les oreilles du Lapin.


Pouvez-vous sentir son agonie?

Mère est éviscérée, ses membres sont déchirés et dispersés à travers le cosmos.

 

Translation by Sara Linton

I ask the orchids

 

The Earth is a silent explosion of red-orange and yellow-green

Quaking aspen leaves shiver-whisper goodbyes to their siblings as

Their root system lies strong in the cool soil.

 

I am the forest; in her depths, I feel safe.

I want to memorize the story of the breeze and earn the trust of the trees. I ask the orchids to teach me their symmetry.

 

Pine needles sip final sunlight

Chlorophyll, chlorophyll

 

As the sun dips, the peaks bathe in alpenglow

Fox and Owl begin nightly prowl

 

We inter-exist.

I see with the moon's rays; the trees are my lungs.

I feel a million stars like freckles on a friend's face.

I hear the Coyote's howl with the Rabbit's ears.

 

Can you feel Her agony?

Mother is eviscerated, her limbs are torn and scattered across the cosmos.

 

Text by Jared Murphy