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When I come to the end of the road And the sun has set for me
I want no rites in a gloom filled room
Why cry for a soul set free?
Miss me a little, but not for long
And not with your head bowed low Remember the love that once we shared Miss me, but let me go.
For this is a journey we all must take And each must go alone.
It's all part of the master plan
A step on the road to home.
When you are lonely and sick at heart Go the friends we know.
Laugh at all the things we used to do Miss me, but let me go.
When I am dead my dearest Sing no sad songs for me
Plant thou no roses at my head
Nor shady cypress tree
Be the green grass above me
With showers and dewdrops wet
And if thou wilt remember
And if thou wilt, forget.
I shall not see the shadows, I shall not fear the rain;
I shall not hear the nightingale Sing on as if in pain; And dreaming through the twilight That doth not rise nor set, Haply I may remember, And haply may forget.
- Christina Rossetti
Program Notes
Written to conclude my 6-piece work Songs from the Departed, “Let Me Go” serves as the destination of an emotional journey: a celebration of life in the face of one’s death. A setting of the Christina Rossetti poem of the same name, the text rejects traditional funeral rites and sadness in favor of an uplifting joy with the knowledge that the departed is simply on the “road to home.”
To fit the joyous spirit of the text, I chose to forego my typical style in favor of a more Irish folk song inspired melody. As the culmination of Songs from the Departed, it also includes several musical references to the other movements.
Composer Bio
Mickey McGroarty is an emerging composer based in Akron, Ohio, where he lives with his fiancée Anneliese and two cats, Twilight and Piper. McGroarty earned his Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Akron under Marie Bucoy-Calavan after obtaining his Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from the same institution. He currently teaches piano, organ, voice, choir, and fundamentals of music at Hiram College and plays piano and organ for both Church of Our Savior Episcopal in Akron and Temple Israel in Fairlawn. McGroarty’s music has been performed all over the world, from L.A. to Munich, Germany and has been commissioned by such ensembles as Cleveland Chamber Choir and Choral Arts Initiative.
Text
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7 Solo Solo S A T B no fil endcometothe I cry, gloom want rites a Why I the road set And When led has sun why ofthe in room cry for me for a soul set cry, why cry, Why set soul why soul cry, Why cry, set Hopeful ( = 62) T/B
Mickey McGroarty (1996)
Let Me Go
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Christina Rossetti (1830-1894)
Slightly Faster ( = 72) S/A
Slightly Faster ( = 72)
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a lit but tle, your the Re
Only Altos +Sopranos
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free? Missme, me but go. oo
free? Missme, we
with And not go.
shared we once
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head me
bowed let oo oo
but oo
let
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18 13 Solo Solo S A S A T B T B
once
for that ber we love
long Missme mem
shared me go. once
Faster ( = 82)
miss let Miss me once
go. shared mem
Faster ( = 82)
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me go. me go.
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let but ney
Oh,
Re ber
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Faster still ( = 92)
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but And
me once
love all part of
me go
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For we must a lone.
28 24 32 S A S A T B T B T B sub sub
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4
When terplan to amdead
step
When we dear
things at we friends to to do the on 6 6 6
home.
know.
I my dear Go 3 6 6 6
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used 6 6 6 6
Missme, but rit. A Tempo A Tempo rit. sim.
42 37 48 S A S A S A T B T B
sick and
go.
me est amdead
lone let heart at ly est the my
Laugh I When
youare allthe road A mas
57 51 53 55 S A S A S A T B T B T B for there songs Plant the sad no ro grass bove my at With no a me ses head Sing green Be me With for Sing green me Be dy sha a press grass me cy Nor bove songs sad the no tree 3 3 6 6 sim. 5 This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.
63 59 61 S A S A T B T B T B dows, wers sha the shall see drops not I not Ishall the wet fear And for sho ifthouwilt, and dew get. thou wet notsee fear show mem the ber re for drops if wilt,ifthou dew sha dows, get. And And Ishall Ishall not the wilt and ers 3 3 3 Triumphant ( = 102) rit. rit.
rit. 6 This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.
Triumphant ( = 102)
That
notIshall ly
hear re Hap set,
the doth nor
the ber,
pain; night hap
out may mem
Relaxing ( = 96) rit. molto rit.
the ingale rain; night pi
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pain; nothear ly
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dream rain; not 3 3 3
in twi gale
nor get.
rit.
light twi may
I
Relaxing (= 96)
light as set,
Anddreamingthrough if in as And get. For
And rise
A Tempo ( = 62)
throughthe for
ing out Cry get. 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6
A Tempo ( = 62)
79 68 75 Solo S A S A S A T B T B T B the When
cometo I hap
Thatdothnot ly rise
molto rit.
molto rit. sim. 7 This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.
84 89 Solo Solo S A T B Why for I set rites free? cry set room a gloom in a has the sun for soul why no me road end the of And cry, filled want why soul Why free? cry, cry, set Why free? cry, why cry, soul set 8 This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.
