Vocal Composition of the Day, Installment 9: "Is there a flower (whom"
for
Mezzo-Soprano and Piano
(1980);
Text by E. E. Cummings
Today I recall my first successful piece of music, "Is there a flower (whom". This song, which is influenced by the music of Debussy, was first performed in Seully Hall at the Boston Conservatory of Music on 3 May 1981 by mezzo-soprano Allison Twiss (O'Neill) accompanied by pianist Bradley Pennington. Follow the next link which is located on my website to listen to their performance.
Follow the next link which is located on my website to view a watermarked PDF of the score.
Follow the next link to view a synthesized scrolling score music video for "Is there a flower (whom located on my website which I created to encourage live performances.
This title is available for licensing from me for performance only in the USA. The reason is that, as of 2019, the text by E. E. Cummings is in the Public Domain in the USA only.
TEXT
if there a flower (whom
i meet anywhere)
able to be and seem
so quite softly as your hair
what bird has perfect fear
(of suddenly me) like these
first deepest rare
quite who are your eyes
(shall any dream
come a more millionth mile
shyly to its doom
than you will smile)
—E. E. Cummings (1894–1962)
I hope you enjoy "Is there a flower (whom". Thank you for your time and attention.
Stanley M. Hoffman, PhD
Link to my website: https://www.stanleymhoffman.com
Biography Published in Grove Music Online (The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Oxford University Press)
https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/browse?btog=chap&pageSize=20&sort=titlesort&subSite=grovemusic&t=music_People%3A18&t0=music_Topics%3A78
The "Stanley M. Hoffman Special Collection" was established at The Berklee College of Music Library Archive in January 2025. It will take whatever time is necessary for the archive to catalog my collection and make it available to the public.
Website: https://archives.berklee.edu
Comments