Albumleaf 155: January 18, 2019 (Bologna)
Just swishing out between bigger ‘leaves.
Loe I haue made a Calender for euery yeare . .
And if I marked well the starres reuolution,
It shall continewe till the worlds dissolution . . .
Goe lyttle Calender, thou hast a free passeporte,
Goe but a lowly gate emongste the meaner sorte.
Dare not to match thy pype with Tityrus his style,
Nor with the Pilgrim that the Ploughman playde a whyle:
But followe them farre off, and their high steppes adore,
The better please, the worse despise, I aske nomore.
Albumleaf 154: January 3, 2019 (Bologna)
Colin, a shepherd’s boy, bemoans his unrequited love for Rosalind and likens his state to the barren season around him. Bereft of hope, he breaks his pipe in pieces.
Albumleaf 153: December 17, 2018 (Bologna)
Colin likens his life to the passing of the seasons and bids adieu to the world.
Albumleaf 152: December 6, 2018 (Bologna)
As in “Mood Indigo” or “Parker’s Mood.” That vein kind of.
Albumleaf 151: November 19, 2018 (Bologna)
Homage to Kurtág
Recurring throughout György Kurtág’s oeuvre is an eight-note melody which has lyrics, though to my knowledge they are never actually sung: “Flowers we are, frail flowers.” Albumleaf 151 presents a variation of this melody. Notes 1-5, 10-11, and 14 are Kurtág’s. The others are mine.
Albumleaf 150: November 15, 2018 (Bologna)
Colin sings of Dido’s death.
Albumleaf 149: October 25, 2018 (Bologna)
Goe little booke: thy selfe present,
As child whose parent is unkent . . .
And asked, who thee forth did bring
A shepheards swaine saye did thee sing,
All as his straying flocke he fedde . . .
But if that any aske thy name,
Say thou wert base begot with blame:
For thy thereof thou takest shame.
And when thou art past ieopardee,
Come tell me, what was sayd of mee:
And I will send more after thee.
–The Shepheardes Calender, opening
Albumleaf 147: October 15, 2018 (Bologna)
Alas, Cuddie, your gift for poetry, given by God, we do not reward. Perhaps you should turn to singing songs of war?
R. David Salvage composes and performs all the music on this blog, unless otherwise indicated. SCORES to some of the music on this website are posted here. Albumleaves is also featured on the album Lock and Key (Navona 5881). Some of Salvage’s larger compositions can be found on SoundCloud. He is also the author of Getting Back to Music: A Dialogue About Music Appreciation.