Slow Tears

by

Rhonda Larson

Program Notes

Slow Tears was inspired by the Orlando Gibbons (15^th cent.) choral setting of “Drop, Drop, Slow Tears”. Usually sung during Lent, it tells the story of remorse due to our blindness as humans. We “see” what we lack as human beings, the knowledge of which compels our truest tears which drop slowly “onto the feet of Jesus”. I felt that the Gibbons musical setting was a bit too cheery for the words, so I set out to rectify that in writing a new version, which subsequently became an entirely different piece of music.

Performance Notes

The ideal accompanying keyboard for this piece is both piano and synthesizer, one player. Piano in one hand, while synth is played on the other hand (your choice of which hand, depending upon where the synth keyboard is set up). The reason for the two keyboards is that the accompanying piano is very basic, and the synth string orchestra sound adds depth and fills out the “dropping of tears” of the piano. (Listen to the recording of this piece on “Distant Mirrors”, and you will intuitively understand.) Piano is written in the bottom staff, unless otherwise noted, while the synth part exists mainly in the sustained notes. If you only have a piano to accompany this, make it a Grande one, responsive to the fact that your notes need to sustain and be played with the same sensitivity in the striking of the chords as if you were a string orchestra.

--Rhonda

October 2003