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About the Composer
Timothy C. Takach
Timothy C. Takach Publications
Empty (TB)
A powerful statement: it’s okay to be imperfect and vulnerable.
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Empty
TBB, piano, djembe
Timothy C. Takach has a love of popular music, and it’s evident in this piece. Strong, independent piano writing complement the vocal lines, syncopated rhythms create natural text stress, and an optional djembe part pushes the piece forward. Destined to become a staple in TB repertoire, “Empty” is a powerful piece for singers. From quiet declamations of failure to loud admissions of need, this text will appeal to your singers right away.
Composer’s Notes
“Empty” is a text about setting the bar high, and missing it. Men’s choirs never get to sing about that. It’s a chance to male singers to be vulnerable and honest. Everyone has had that experience where they don’t make the team. Their name is not on the call-back list. The test comes back with a C- on it. She says no. He says no. How does that feel? It feels like a bone in the desert – bleached dry, needing water. It feels like a swinging gate – neither closed nor open, hovering somewhere in between. It feels like a bell – calling for someone who never comes.
– Timothy C. Takach
Text
I wanted so badly to be good.
I wanted everything to turn out right
in the end. I wanted to go to heaven.
Whatever I thought I should lose,
I lost; whatever the cost,
I paid it. Nothing was too much.
I worked hard at letting go; I
learned the art of denial. Wine
turned into water, bread to stone.
I was the bone singing in the desert,
the gate swinging on its hinge;
I was the bell ringing and ringing.
– Joyce Sutphen, “Empty” from Naming the Stars. Copyright © 2004 by Joyce Sutphen. Used by permission of The Permissions Company, Inc,. on behalf of Holy Cow! Press, www.holycowpress.org. All rights reserved worldwide.
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