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DAVID LANG BATTLE HYMNS

FOR SMALL OR LARGE CHORUS PLUS ONE MILITARY DRUM SCORE

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battle hymns

I’ll be a soldier a father’s love tell me as I would not be a slave beautiful dreamer

battle hymns was commissioned by The Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia, Alan Harler, Music Director; and the Leah Stein Dance Company, Leah Stein, Artistic Director.

the duration is approximately 45 minutes.

battle hymns may be performed as a concert work or with lighting, staging, film and /or choreography.

battle hymns was premiered as a site-specific installation with dance, on 13 June 2009, at the 23rd Street Armory in Philadelphia. it received its concert premiere on 17 October 2009, also in Philadelphia.

the order of the movements for a concert performance is set, as printed in the score; this order may be changed, however, to suit the needs of any theatrical realization.

all movements are a cappella, except for the fourth movement - as I would not be a slave - which includes a military drum. ideally, this part should be played by a member of the chorus, and any snare or field drum can work, depending on the resonance of the hall.

all movements may be performed together or individually, or in any smaller grouping.

it is also imagined that the three movements based on civil war era song lyrics by stephen foster – I’ll be a soldier, tell me, and beautiful dreamer - can be performed separately as a suite unto themselves. if so, this three movement suite should be titled:

after stephen foster

battle hymns program note battle hymns is a large scale collection of songs about war.

Commissioned by the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia and Leah Stein Dance Company for a performance in an old armory in Philadelphia, it was intended to be something that would both take from and return something to its environment. Because of the connection to an armory I chose to make a piece out of texts that in some way had something to do with the American Civil War, not to portray the battles or show one side’s feelings about the other but to explore feelings that people of that time might have felt. I deliberately avoided texts that were too sentimental, or too dogmatic. I didn’t want anyone to get a message about this war, or about war in general. I did however want to see if I could put myself in a position to think contemporaneous thoughts.

There are five separate pieces. One is a setting of one of the most famous Civil War letters, the Sullivan Ballou letter. It is a heartbreaking letter by an officer to his wife, to be sent home only if he was killed in battle. Of course, it was sent. To keep this text from becoming too overpoweringly emotional I took every phrase from his letter and then alphabetized them, changing the text from a sorrowful narrative to a catalogue of hopes and memories and fears. Another text is a simple statement of Abraham Lincoln’ s, about why slavery is wrong. Surrounding them are lyrics I have rewritten that are from songs written during the Civil War by Stephen Foster. Two of these Stephen Foster songs know that there’s a war going on; I can’t help but feel that avoidance of the war in the third, Foster’s most famous lyric and song, is a secret attempt by Foster to escape it, acknowledging the importance of the war by avoiding it entirely.

battle hymns

words by david lang

(after stephen foster, sullivan ballou and abraham lincoln)

I’ll be a soldier words by david lang (after stephen foster)

I'll be a soldier I'll be a soldier

I’ll march to the drum

I’ll lie in my tent when the night shadows come with knapsack and gun

I’ll stand to my post till the din of battle's done.

I'll be a soldier

I’ll dream of you

I’ll be far, far away

a father’s love words by david lang (after sullivan ballou)

a father's love after having eaten always always am communing with god american civilization now leans amidst your happiest scenes among the dimmest memories and the name of honor and bears me irresistibly on and burn to ashes and care and children and death to me and diligently and flit unseen and foolish and full of pleasure and gloomiest hours and hard it is for me and hover near you and how great a debt we owe and I and I am willing and I could not find one and I feel most gratified

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and if there be a soft breeze and I have obeyed and in the darkest night and it may be and lead thither my children. and loved together and my blue eyed edgar and my children and my courage does not halt or falter and never know and often and of the principles and proudly in the breeze and replace them and seen our sons grow up and small claims and struggle and suffering of the revolution and thee and the many pains i have caused you and to pay that debt. and to you and wait for thee and wait with sad patience and when my last breath escapes me and yet and your development

a pure love around those they loved around us as for my little boys as I have done be done before that of death before the people behind me with his fatal dart but but but few but I cannot but something whispers to me but thine 0 god come creeping over me come to me do not mourn me dead every little spot floats calmly for a wrong motive

forgive my many faults for long years for my country for we shall meet again for you from harm from the spirit land god willing have called upon me have often advocated his and hers how gladly would I wash out how much I love you how thoughtless I am ready I call god's blessing I cannot describe to you I feel impelled if I do not, if it is necessary if the dead can come back I have I have no misgivings about I have oftentimes been I have sought most closely I have spent with you I have unlimited confidence I know I know how strongly I lay down nearly all of yours I must offer it as I must watch you in fierce, though useless, contest in my breast in the garish day in this life in this life in thus hazarding the happiness of those I loved in your matern al care I shall always be near you in is it weak it is the wafted prayer it seems it shall be my breath it shall be my spirit passing by. it will whisper I wait for you there lest I should not be able like a strong wind little willie is too young many of them enjoying the last my country

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my darling wife my dear sarah my dear wife my feelings my love for you is deathless my love of country comes over me myself my very dear sarah: never forget not my will of his childhood of my country of my little edgar of the blissful moments of their characters of this world one of a few days duration one of severe conflict on the battlefield on the battlefield on this calm summer night or dishonorable or lack of confidence or the cool air fans osarah osarah our movement may be perfectly willing perhaps perhaps perhaps tomorrow sarah sarah sarah should struggle suspicious tell my two mothers that that death is creeping that I have enjoyed them so long that I love more than i fear death that I shall return that I should fall that may fall under your eye that my unbounded love that nothing but omnipotence could break that we shall move i n a few days the bitter fruit of orphanage the cause in which i am engaged the hopes of future years the indications are very strong their only sustenance the memories the triumph of the government they will grow

think I am gone through the blood till we meet to part no more. to bind me to you to give them up to god to help maintain this government to honorable manhood to lay down all my joys to my dear little children to my loved ones to remember me long to shield you to the battlefield. to this earth to those who went before us to write lines to write you again unharmed upon upon divi ne providence upon them upon your cheek upon your happiness we might still have lived when when when I know when I shall be no more. when two thousand men are sleeping around me while the banner of my purpose while you buffet the storms will keep my frolics with him with all the misfortune with all these chains with cares and sorrows with mighty cables with my love of country with my own joys with my tears with your precious little freight your name. your throbbing temple

tell me words by david lang (after stephen foster)

tell me, tell me weary soldier was my brother in the battle? was he brave? was he valiant? was his name among the wounded? was he numbered with dead?

was my brother in the battle?

tell me, tell me weary soldier tell me.

did he struggle? di d he fall?

tell me.

was my brother in the battle? when the bugle called? when the cannon roared?

tell me.

oh, I wish I could have seen him.

as I would not be a slave words by abraham lincoln

as I would not be a slave so I would not be a master.

beautiful dreamer words by david lang (after stephen foster)

beautiful dreamer starlight and dewdrops sounds of the rude world lull ed by the moonlight all passed away. beautiful dreamer

beautiful dreamer list while I woo thee gone are the cares beautiful dreamer

beautiful dreamer, mermaids are chanting over the streamlet waiting to fade beautiful dreamer

beautiful dreamer even as the morn then will the clouds of sorrow depart, beautiful dreamer

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I'll be a soldier

words by david lang, after stephen foster music by david lang

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a father's love

quiet and heavy, getting more and more intense like the slow march of

all parts marked SOLO may be given instead to small groups ad lib. singers may trade off moving between the solo and the tutti parts, in order to keep from getting too tired.

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quiet,

as I would not be a slave

words by abraham lincoln music by david lang

barely audible but agitated not at peace painfully slow

beautiful dreamer

words by david lang, after stephen foster music by david lang

s: very smooth - hold notes as long and as quietly as you can. when you need to breathe do so, gasp audibly, with a tiny accent, and reenter quietly where you left off

beautiful beautiful beauty beauty, etc....

a, t, b: repeat phrase over and over, quickly, irregularly, independently and unsynchronized with any other singer, varying the order, lenghth and number of repetitions with each repeat:

move seamlessly from whispered to barely voiced on the pitches indicated and back again, ad lib, when you need to breathe do so, gasp audibly, with a tiny accent, and quietly begin again

if a more sustained sound is desired some a,t and b may hum the notes indicated