Of Roses and Lilies (Soprano Solo, Women’s Chorus, Soprano Recorder, English Horn, Piano, and String Orchestra)

A Romantic Expression based on King Solomon’s Song of Songs.
For Soprano Solo, Women’s Chorus, Soprano Recorder, English Horn, Piano, and String Orchestra.

Completed in 2013, this work is “A Romantic Expression Based on King Solomon’s Song of Songs.” Flirting with musical and dramatic elements from Medieval Europe to the ancient Middle East and Ancient Greek Theatre, “Of Roses and Lilies” features the solo soprano in the role of The Woman. She expresses her love, devotion, and delight toward her Lover while the Daughters of Jerusalem — as with that of the collective commentary of a Greek chorus — listen and engage with The Woman in her tales touting the glories of her Beloved.

The work is in three major sections following the expressive and fluid introduction: the first in A Minor, introducing the characters and their vivid emotions; the second in A Major, during which The Woman shares a tale of her Lover calling her to escape with him into the night… “For the winter is past and the rain gone…” —when for a moment she hesitates, she wonders if she is too late, only to find that he is still there waiting for her, encouraging her with the sweet words of his continued adoration toward her; the third section returns to the original themes in A Minor, yet gains an expression of great power and fervency as The Woman’s love for her Beloved utterly transforms her.

The ensemble piece Of Roses and Lilies reveals another aspect of Wallin Huff’s output, full of repose and glowing timbral and harmonic beauty. The music is sometimes unashamedly expansive, post-Romantic and even filmic, and brilliantly written for solo soprano Pola Benke and a six-member women’s chorus. It is only later that this is colored with more extended harmonies and somewhat clashing lines. Based on King Solomon’s Song of Songs, the soloist is The Woman, who talks of her relationship with her lover; a Greek chorus of women comments. (Colin Clarke, Fanfare Magazine)