About the piece

“The cicadas make a good chorus,
Which can make a loud sound.
Sing, cicadas!”

Written for a laugh during the cicada bloom in the summer of 2021, Le Cigale is composed in the renaissance style of Josquin de Pres’ famous El Grillo. The final chord can be performed one of three different ways: a tonal resolution, a dramatic modern cluster, or an aleatoric choral scream.

Listen

Dr. Allegra Martin, director. Chamber Singers, November 21, 2021, Brooks Concert Hall, College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, MA.

Instrumentation

SATB Chorus

Duration

3 minutes

year written

2021

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