adamsworks.com

Two Songs from Women of Troy

a composition for women's voices and percussion by Robert Train Adams
masterlist : choral

Duration

8'30"

Description

These songs were written as incidental music for a production of Women of Troy at Susquehanna University in 1999. While not trying for chronological accuracy, I used a combination of modal writing, chant-like melodies and parallel lines to give the sense of an earlier time period. The drum part, althoiugh written into the score, has, or certainly should have, an improvisatory character.

In our production, the drummer attended several rehearsals so that what he played would come out of the action. The story is not pretty, and the drummer adds a wonderful element of tension.

As I was listening to the songs and preparing this page on the fifth anniversary of 9/11/2001, I was struck by a sense of parallel events. Both 911 and Troy were cataclismic events, particularly for those caught up in the middle. Endings aren't always happy, and understanding is difficult. And I felt afresh a sense of loss and grief.

Score Excerpt

My Song, page 1 (jpeg)
My Song, page 1 (html with gifs)

Lord Zeus, page 1 (jpeg)
Lord Zeus, page 6 (jpeg)

Sound File

My Song (mp3)

Lord Zeus (mp3)