Birds in the Garden (2020) - Orchestra

"Birds in the Garden" (2020) - for orchestra
After a poem by Alfred Tennyson (1809 - 1892) from "Maud"
Music byDylan May
The poem:
1.
Birds in the high Hall-garden
When twilight was falling,
Maud, Maud, Maud, Maud,
They were crying and calling.
2.
Where was Maud? in our wood;
And I, who else, was with her,
Gathering woodland lilies,
Myriads blow together.
3.
Birds in our wood sang
Ringing thro' the vallies,
Maud is here, here, here
In among the lilies.
4.
I kiss'd her slender hand,
She took the kiss sedately;
Maud is not seventeen,
But she is tall and stately.
5.
I to cry out on pride
Who have won her favour!
Maud were sure of Heaven
If lowliness could save her.
6.
I know the way she went
Home with her maiden posy,
For her feet have touch'd the meadows
And left the daisies rosy.
7.
Birds in the high Hall-garden
Were crying and calling to her,
Where is Maud, Maud, Maud,
One is come to woo her.
8.
Look, a horse at the door,
And little King Charles is snarling,
Go back, my lord, across the moor,
You are not her darling.
{F. Delius sets stanzas 1-4, 6}
{Somervell sets stanzas 1-4, 6}
'Maud' is an unusual work of literature which deals mostly with love and obsession. I was inclined to set the verses above for orchestra (essentially a work of program music) because of its enchanting, obsessive, and repetitive nature. I got all sorts of colorful & lush ideas for orchestration when reading through it.
I hope you enjoy!
(Performance rendered with MuseScore 4 and mastered with Audacity.)
Mr. May's Music
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/ mrmayallday

[@Jk-us7wt]

A fascinating piece of gnarled romanticism Like the use of atonal yearning, which is an effective portrait of the poems' discordant, Lolita like obsession I'd also love to hear the Delius setting as I so enjoy his haunting sound world

[@Jk-us7wt]

Ps You should also think of setting these verses as an art song

[@MrMayAllDay]

That’s where this originates! 😂

[@Jk-us7wt]

@@MrMayAllDay great minds think alike lol