In Transit (2020)
amplified SATB soloists & wind ensemble
c. 8 minutes
text by Cara Haxo, adapted from the thirteen French “être verbs”
Commissioned by the Notre Dame College Wind Symphony, Michael Krueger, director
c. 8 minutes
text by Cara Haxo, adapted from the thirteen French “être verbs”
Commissioned by the Notre Dame College Wind Symphony, Michael Krueger, director
aller – to go | arriver – to arrive | descendre – to descend | entrer – to enter | montrer – to climb
mourir – to die | naître – to be born | partir – to leave | rester – to stay
retourner – to return | sortir – to go out | tomber – to fall | venir – to come
In French, the thirteen verbs listed above are classified as “être verbs”—that is, intransitive verbs that are paired with the verb être in the composed pass (passé compose), one of the first tenses students learn after the present tense. The text of In Transit (2020) organizes these thirteen verbs into a loose narrative representing movement to and from a single location. This theme of movement permeates the entire work. Although the outer two sections of the work do not include text, the fast tempo and shifting orchestration create the sensation of perpetual motion. In the central section of the work, the voices enter one at a time on the text, growing stronger and more confident with each iteration. Finally, they reach the conclusion that “we have arrived.” Yet in this same moment of so-called arrival, the texture shifts back to the original quick-paced, searching material that constantly pushes ahead. Just before the ending of the work, the voices pose the question “Have we arrived?” The answer to this question is left for the individual listener to decide.
Text
I come, I go,
I enter and go out,
I leave and I fall and I climb and descend, I return and stay.
I am born, I die,
I go and I come,
I enter and go out and leave and I fall, And I climb and descend and I stay;
I will return;
We have arrived.
mourir – to die | naître – to be born | partir – to leave | rester – to stay
retourner – to return | sortir – to go out | tomber – to fall | venir – to come
In French, the thirteen verbs listed above are classified as “être verbs”—that is, intransitive verbs that are paired with the verb être in the composed pass (passé compose), one of the first tenses students learn after the present tense. The text of In Transit (2020) organizes these thirteen verbs into a loose narrative representing movement to and from a single location. This theme of movement permeates the entire work. Although the outer two sections of the work do not include text, the fast tempo and shifting orchestration create the sensation of perpetual motion. In the central section of the work, the voices enter one at a time on the text, growing stronger and more confident with each iteration. Finally, they reach the conclusion that “we have arrived.” Yet in this same moment of so-called arrival, the texture shifts back to the original quick-paced, searching material that constantly pushes ahead. Just before the ending of the work, the voices pose the question “Have we arrived?” The answer to this question is left for the individual listener to decide.
Text
I come, I go,
I enter and go out,
I leave and I fall and I climb and descend, I return and stay.
I am born, I die,
I go and I come,
I enter and go out and leave and I fall, And I climb and descend and I stay;
I will return;
We have arrived.