from Les Chansons des Roses-In addition to his vast output of German poetry Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926) composed nearly 400 poems in French. His poems on roses struck me as especially charming filled with gorgeous lyricism deftly crafted and elegant in their imagery. These exquisite poems are primarily light joyous and playful and the musical settings are designed to enhance these characteristics and capture the delicate beauty and sensuousness of the poetry. Distinct melodic and harmonic materials recur throughout the cycle especially between Rilke''s poignant 'Contre qui rose' (set as a wistful nocturne) and his moving 'La rose complète.' The final piece 'Dirait-on ' is composed as a tuneful chanson populaire or folksong that weaves together two melodic ideas first heard in fragmentary form in preceding movements. 'Les Chansons des Roses' was premiered and recorded in 1993 by Portland Oregon ''s celebrated chamber choir Choral Cross-Ties conducted by Bruce Browne. The complete cycle has been widely performed since then and also recorded by the Los Angeles Master Chorale Los Angeles Chamber Singers Nordic Chamber Choir and tonight's performers the Donald Brinegar Singers. (Morten Lauridsen)
