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About the Composer
Jocelyn Hagen
JH Music (Jocelyn Hagen)
Heart of Gold
This poem by Julia Klatt Singer draws inspiration from Kintsukuroi, the Japanese art of mending pottery with gold.
SSAA a cappella choir
In “Heart of Gold” Hagen fuses poetry and music “like a peach in its skin,” to quote Virgil Thomson. Four-part treble voices are beautifully laid out in both accompaniment and melodic textures, each developing in an organic way. The whole song gradually progresses to-wards a harmonic resolution from minor to major, bringing about a rhetorical reconstruction of a shattered heart. The low murmuring accompaniment figure in the alto voices gently propels the song onward, almost urging the sopranos to express their urgent message of healing and hope. Imitation and counterpoint break up the homophony, creating independent and interesting parts for each voice.
~ Jonathan Campbell
Composer’s Notes
I’m a bit of a perfectionist, musicians often are. But the mistakes we make in performance are what make us human. And the exuberance and excitement of live performance, along with the knowledge that it will likely be imperfect, is part of why it is so powerful and communicative. When we perform for you, we are showing off our skills, yes, but also our vulnerability and imperfections. The same can be said for writing music. The flaws are not only beautiful, they are splendid.
-Jocelyn Hagen
Text
Like the lines of your hands
and the scars on my back
we wear our history
and when I look at you
all I can see
is your heart
the jagged lines;
each break, each bend
of gold.
~ Julia Klatt Singer
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