#kenji oh

Premiered on June 11, 2013 in Brooklyn, NY Choral Chameleon Vince Peterson, conductor Text by A. E. Houseman Stars, I have seen them fall, But when they drop and die No star is lost at all From all the star-sown sky. The toil of all that be Helps not the primal fault; It rains into the sea And still the sea is salt. **Program note** This poem by Alfred Edward Housman(1859-1936) conveys a feeling of helplessness and emptiness with vivid visual images in a pessimistic tone. Because the images are so vivid and beautiful, they make a strong contrast with the poem’s message and tone. And the strong contrast makes the images more beautiful, the message indomitable. I tried to enhance this mutual effect by highlighting those beautiful images and underlining the shadow behind the images. Though my initial impression of the poem was pessimistic beauty, I still see its optimistic side as well. Even while no star is lost at all, we wouldn’t prefer starless dark sky anyway. Even while still the sea is salt, salty ocean is the origin of lives. Houseman left this optimistic possibility and it makes the poem ambiguous, and the ambiguity makes the poem even more beautiful. The harmonic language in this piece has reflection of this ambiguity.