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Katerina Gimon
Katerina Gimon
A Path to Hope (SSA)
A set of three short works about finding hope in challenging times.
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A Path to Hope
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A Path to Hope
Upper voices, a cappella
A Path to Hope is a set of three short works drawing inspiration from reflections written by Canadian choral music educators early in the COVID-19 pandemic as part of a collaborative commissioning project called Sonic Timelapse Project. Each movement was composed as a short response to a specific idea, emotion, or question found within one or more of the reflections as part of my own journey to finding hope in uncertain times. Each work includes short spoken sections featuring fragments from or inspired by the material in these written reflections. However, although this piece was born during a unique time in our history it’s themes of voicelessness, overcoming fear, and seeking hope, are timeless and universal.
Composed entirely for body percussion the first movement, Without Voice, is a loose play on the morse code spelling of the word “voiceless” and represents the struggle to find a place or ‘voice’ in a silent world where no one is listening.
The second movement, The Fear, is inspired by Canadian poet Pat Lowther’s work of the same name. Sung to a short, repeated mantra, this song is about building the strength to face fear itself by learning to accept the constancy of change and in doing so, embracing growth instead.
The final movement, Believe, is a brief yet potent response to the uncertainty of the future and serves as a reminder of our own resilience and the power of hope.
Composer’s Notes
Conductor’s Note:
A Path to Hope is not a challenging work and it is its simplicity that gives it great impact. Ironically, the first movement, Without Voice, is the most challenging due to the body percussion. It is a challenge for the singers to ‘hold’ their own body percussion while seeing and hearing something different around them. This movement requires the most practice. The Fear and Believe are straight forward musically and yet allow a chance for discussion with your choir. I would say this work is best suited for youth and young adult choirs as it does require both Katerina’s written body percussion and some ‘choralograpahy’ to bring it off the page. In a time when we are hearing about so many voices who have been silenced speaking out, A Path to Hope is a timely, sensitive and appropriate reflection of a hopeful path forward.
— Elise Naccarato, Artistic Director, Myriad Ensemble
Composer’s Note:
You can find detailed notes about the inspiration for and realization of this work preceding the score. I’ll just note a few things here quickly:
1) These works may be performed together as a set or separately.
2) Don’t let the body percussion scare you! I’ve included a few options depending on the level of choir and their comfort level for memorizing this work.
3) Make these works yours own! The spoken introductions are quite flexible and may be customized to reflect the voices and stories of the performing ensemble, their struggles, and individual experiences in seeking hope.
— Katerina Gimon
Text
1. Without Voice
[no text, this mvt. is entirely body percussion]
2. The Fear
It’s not the change but the fear that holds me down.
3. Believe
Believe that someday soon we will sing again as one.
— Katerina Gimon
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