Orange-Mounts of More Soft Ascent

Performance Notes
Because of the tight harmonies, little to no vibrato is desirable.
Take a breath only when indicated by a rest.
If a crescendo appears without a starting/ending dynamic it is based on the treatment of the text.

Program Notes
It seems that Keats was not a fan of the color orange. I can’t say that I am either but, after undertaking the task of reading Keats’ collected works to find poems that mentioned colors, I wish he would have enjoyed it a little more because it seems that in his short life he only used the word “orange” once in his poetry. Granted that it’s one of those words that’s sort of famous for not rhyming with anything, but it still seemed ironic that in 458 pages the color only came up once.

That being said, I was lucky he decided to use it in a great poem. In the eight lines I excerpted Keats sprays invective on the prideful like a literary skunk (and even mentions another color in the process). He builds toward a final, desperate accusation to the heavens spitting out consonants like a great snake along the way.

A special note: I am especially indebted to Matthew Culloton and Vicki Peters for supporting the creation of such a large work. They and their respective choirs gave all six pieces amazing premieres in three different “volumes” (red/green, purple/yellow and blue/orange).