
Spring and FallINSTRUMENTATION: Medium voice, cello, & piano
“Spring and Fall” is a setting of Hopkins’ poem by the same name. In the text, the speaker consoles Margaret, who is grieving her first loss (loss of innocence or possibly a death). The speaker attempts a stoic veneer, but emotion seeps through; the speaker’s own struggle is brought out in the rapidly shifting mood of the cello cadenza. The speaker asks Margaret why she is weeping, concluding that she weeps for a universal human condition, something we all feel but can scarcely name: “It is the blight man was born for, / It is Margaret you mourn for.” While both instruments engage in musical commentary on the text, the piano is more of a passive observer of the mood; the cello is more closely aligned to the voice and to the speaker’s emotional struggle, as the speaker tries to comfort Margaret, and ultimately, him- or herself.
Details
- Publication Date
- Aug 17, 2006
- Language
- English
- Category
- Art & Photography
- Copyright
- All Rights Reserved - Standard Copyright License
- Contributors
- By (author): Aaron Alon
Specifications
- Pages
- 8
- Binding Type
- Paperback Saddle Stitch
- Interior Color
- Black & White
- Dimensions
- US Letter (8.5 x 11 in / 216 x 279 mm)