Six-part chorus (SSATBB, div.), with texts from the Song of Solomon, 11 minutes. First performed by the Cantata Singers of Ottawa, Michael Zaugg, conductor, Shades of Love / Tons d’Amour concert, 19 April 2009, Orleans United Church, Orleans, Ontario.
Also performed by Voces Boreales, Michael Zaugg, conductor, Surge Aquillo concert, 6 June 2010, Église Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montréal.
Score
Download a pdf of the score (for study purposes only).
For performance rights and materials, please contact the composer by e-mail at ch@christopherhossfeld.com.
Text
Song of Solomon 7:11-13; 8:1, 4-7
1. Come, my beloved
Come, my beloved.
Let us go forth into the fields and lodge in the villages;
let us go out early and see
whether the vines have budded,
whether the grape blossoms have opened,
whether the pomegranates are in bloom.
There I will give you my love.
2. Under the apple tree
If I met you outside I would kiss you,
and no one would despise me.
I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
do not stir up or awaken love till it is ready!
Under the apple tree I awaken you;
there your mother is in labor with you.
3. A seal upon your heart
Set me as a seal upon your heart,
set me as a seal upon your arm,
for love is strong as death,
passion fierce as the grave.
It flashes of fire, a raging flame.
Many waters cannot quench love,
neither can the floods drown it.
I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
do not stir up or awaken love till it is ready!
Program Notes
These texts from the Song of Solomon speak of love as both beautiful and terrible. We look for love, and once it is found, it is as if we have known our beloved since birth. Perhaps we always knew what we were seeking. Yet love is both beautiful and terrible: do not stir up or awaken love till it is ready!