My Sister Stood

My Sister Stood sets the beauty and innocence of Hilda Conkling's poem Elsa in three treble voices. The vast body of Conkling's poetry was written when she was between the ages of four and ten years old. She was known to speak poetically in conversation with her mother, who would write down what she had said. This particular poem focuses on Hilda's older sister, Elsa, who was two years older than Hilda was. I was particularly drawn to this poem because of its portrayal of beauty and adoration between siblings. In many ways, I draw parallels to my relationship with my brother, who is also two years my senior. Especially through the child's voice in the poem, I find myself recalling how much I admired and looked up to my brother in my youth, tumultuous though any sibling relationship may be. The piece is written to be accessible by a young choir, but equally powerful when performed by a more mature choir. The piano provides stability to the singers by doubling the vocal lines while simultaneously providing sonic illustration of the rolling waves of the sea. The voices themselves grow in maturity throughout the piece, starting with simple static and contrary motion, but eventually growing into brief instances of three-part rounds and chordal harmonies. This, combined with its pervasive, yet delicate modality lends an aura of mystery to the piece that reflects the nature of memory central to the piece.