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Elizabeth Alexander
Elizabeth Alexander (Seafarer Press)
Trust the Seeds (SATB, orchestra — Choral Score)
A meditation seed-planting, patience and faith.
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Trust the Seeds
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Trust the Seeds
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Trust the Seeds
SATB, orchestra
This is the Choral score.
A meditation on the faith, hope and dreams needed whenever we plant seeds – whether they be the “garden variety” or the seeds of life.
Note: There are three different SATB versions of “Trust the Seeds.” In addition to the original chorale (a cappella, 3′) there are two significantly expanded arrangements, one with a small ensemble (flute, oboe and piano, 6′) and one with orchestra (1100,0000,hp,strings, 6′)
Composer’s Notes
I wrote Trust the Seeds while my preschool children were in daycare. I felt vaguely guilty about that at the time, for shouldn’t I have been spending time with my children rather than composing music about them? As I look back on my unease now I see how unnecessary it was, for not only did my sons adore frolicking with their friends three mornings each week, but writing music was what kept me grounded so that I could happily frolic with them the rest of the time.
As a composer I was still floundering about looking for a grand, elusive thing called “voice.” I was also trying to figure out how to be a professional composer, and while that was elusive too, there was one thing I did know. If anyone was ever going to take me seriously my music needed to invite adjectives such as “formidable,” “visionary,” and “epic.” There was nothing “epic” about Trust the Seeds.
A few years later when I put together my first ever choral music catalog, it was with some hesitation that I included Trust the Seeds at all. But what the heck. There was room on page five for one more piece. I figured it might receive a few minor performances here and there. As it turned out, it became my best selling song for several years, and I even received a commission to create an orchestral version of it. This little chorale actually was part of my “voice” – something its lyrics were trying to tell me all along.
-Elizabeth Alexander
Text
Trust the seeds, although they lie in darkness,
Stirring beyond your watchful eye.
Though they may not flower as you dreamed they would,
When the planting’s over you must trust the seeds.
Some soon bloom to fill your heart with wonder,
Some only after you are gone,
You must give them freedom to grow as they should.
Give them room to spread their roots, and trust the seeds.
In your heart, you know that some may wither,
All you can do is hope and pray.
Some will rise up grander than you dreamed they could.
There is joy in planting if you trust the seeds.
-Elizabeth Alexander
© 1995 by Elizabeth Alexander
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