Composer

:

Roy Harris

Genre

:

Symphony

Style

:

Symphony

Compose Date

:

1935

Average_duration

:

14:39

Movement_count

:

3

Movement ....

Symphony for Voices On Poems of Walt Whitman is a choral symphony composed by Roy Harris in 1936. The symphony was premiered on May 3, 1937, by the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Harvard Glee Club, conducted by Serge Koussevitzky. The symphony consists of four movements, each based on a poem by Walt Whitman. The first movement, "Beat! Beat! Drums!", is a powerful and rhythmic setting of Whitman's poem about the call to arms during the Civil War. The movement begins with a pounding drumbeat and builds to a climax with the full chorus and orchestra. The second movement, "O Captain! My Captain!", is a mournful tribute to Abraham Lincoln, set to Whitman's famous poem of the same name. The movement features a solo baritone and a hauntingly beautiful melody in the strings. The third movement, "The Last Invocation", is a mystical and ethereal setting of Whitman's poem about the power of nature and the universe. The movement features a solo soprano and a shimmering orchestration that evokes the vastness of the cosmos. The final movement, "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd", is a deeply emotional and poignant setting of Whitman's elegy for Lincoln. The movement features a solo mezzo-soprano and a lush orchestration that captures the beauty and sadness of the poem. Overall, Symphony for Voices On Poems of Walt Whitman is a powerful and moving work that showcases Harris's skill as a composer and his deep appreciation for the poetry of Walt Whitman. The symphony is a testament to the enduring power of music and poetry to inspire and uplift the human spirit.

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