SHERMAN, TEXAS—The Austin College Department of Music will present “A River of Words Song Cycle,” a lecture-recital by Bruce Cain, baritone, and David Asbury, guitar, at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, August 31, in the Recital Hall of Craig Hall on campus. The presentation includes a new song setting by John McGinn, Austin College assistant professor of music. The event is free and open to the public.
“A River of Words Song Cycle” originates in two grants awarded to Bruce Cain and David Asbury, one from the Mellon Foundation and one from Southwestern University, to commission, premiere, record, and publish a cycle of art songs for baritone and guitar featuring poetry of an environmental theme. The resulting work features the creative collaboration of Southwestern University faculty members Bruce Cain, baritone, and David Asbury, guitar, as well as the following composers who have written across the connected theme: Terry Vosbein, Washington Lee University; John McGinn, Austin College; Jason Hoogerhyde, Southwestern University; Brian Nelson, Trinity University; Brad Osborn, Rhodes College; and Susan Lackman and Daniel Crozier, Rollins College.
The poems used in the song cycle were selected from past winners of the annual River of Words international art and poetry contest. Founded by former U.S. Poet Laureate Robert Hass and writer-activist Pamela Michael, River of Words is a linked network of people throughout the United States and the world who are committed to teaching the art and poetry of place to young people. Each year, in affiliation with The Library of Congress Center for the Book, River of Words conducts a free international poetry and art contest for young people ages 5-19. The contest, which receives more than 20,000 submissions, encourages young people to explore and express the natural and cultural history of the place they live.
For his contribution to the cycle, McGinn set the poem “It’s a Letter,” written by Yalonda Lockett of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in 2009 when she was 9 years old. Her poem was the Grand Prize Winner in Category II (Grades 3-6). The text is included below:
It's a Letter
In the dark blue sea
I saw a letter, it was
very small and this
is what it said:
I miss you in the dark blue sea.
I love to read but I need help
with some of the words.
I need help but I usually
read alone. I read one book
about Marvin becoming a king,
another book was about a shark.
Every time he sees legs or an arm
he goes into a wave and nothing
is there. Sometimes when I am
sad, I say I hate my life.
I run away, hide under the covers
And nothing is there but my book.
— Yalonda Lockett
The precedence for “A River of Words Song Cycle” exists in such works as the "Genesis Suite,” which features the collaborative efforts of composers such as Stravinsky, Schoenberg, Milhaud and others. Bruce Cain and David Asbury are serving as the primary editors for the work under Clear Note Publications and will be the performers and producers for the work’s recording. The cycle will be performed at Southwestern University, Rhodes College, Austin College, and Rollins College during August 2011, with plans underway for further performances in other locations around the country.
Austin College is a leading national independent liberal arts college located north of Dallas in Sherman, Texas. Founded in 1849, making it the oldest institution of higher education in Texas operating under original charter and name, the college is related by covenant to the Presbyterian Church (USA). Recognized nationally for academic excellence in the areas of international education, pre-professional training, and leadership studies, Austin College is one of 40 schools profiled in Loren Pope’s influential book Colleges That Change Lives.