In the beginning (Michael Winikoff)
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- (Posted 2016-10-15) CPDL #41434:
- Editor: Michael Winikoff (submitted 2016-10-15). Score information: A4, 17 pages, 1.46 MB Copyright: CPDL
- Edition notes:
General Information
Title: In the beginning
Composer: Michael Winikoff
Lyricist:
Number of voices: 4vv Voicing: SATB
Genre: Sacred, Unknown
Language: English
Instruments: A cappella
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Description: When selecting text to set I'm always drawn to text that has vivid imagery. To me the start of Genesis is one such text: I find the image of "the spirit ... hovering over the surface of the waters" quite vivid.
The piece is not religious, so much as spiritual. The first movement is intended to convey mystery and awe. The second energetically depicts the emergence of the wondrous cacophony of life, in all of its forms, and the emergence of a complex ecosystem from a barren rock. The third movement is a gentle contrast, and presents humanity's "mandate" to govern the earth. Gentleness in this movement grows to swelling love and passion. This is followed by an increasingly urgent warning about neglecting our assigned stewardship of the earth. The warnings of rains not coming (droughts), the earth drying up and lying polluted are apt, given the climate change consequences that are being observed today.
This piece was begun in 2010, with the first three movements taking form fairly quickly. However, an initial version of the final movement proved unsatisfying, and was thrown out, and a completely different middle section and ending were written, with the piece finally being completed (prompted by a deadline for a competition) in early 2016.
External websites: http://winikoffmusic.wordpress.com
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