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The Lover’s Promise (2025)

for countertenor and string trio (violin, viola & cello)

Text: Lisa Moore (b. 1964)
Duration: 4.5 minutes
Difficulty: Hard

Commissioned by Opera on the Avalon for their 2024-25 Emerging Artist Program. Recorded premiere by Ryan McDonald to be released in Summer 2025.

The Lover’s Promise was written for countertenor Ryan McDonald as part of Opera on the Avalon’s Emerging Artist Program—one of five commissioned works for 2025. The text for all four works was written by the Newfoundland writer Lisa Moore, based on the story of Marguerite de La Rocque, a 16th century French noblewoman who became stranded on an island in Eastern Canada, pregnant and accompanied by both her maid and her lover. While Marguerite survived until her rescue several years later, her maid, lover, and child all died during that period.

This aria for countertenor is written from the perspective of Marguerite’s lover, intentionally obscuring their gender and identity. The lover describes finding Marguerite unconscious on the beach, resuscitating her and making a promise to never abandon her. The Lover’s Promise depicts the serenity of the island with lush harmonies and undulating tremolos, while hinting at something sinister lurking in the shadows. As it builds to a climax, the textures become less stable until the singer explodes in a raw outburst. In the final moments, the music is broken off as the lover is forced to break their promise—ending their life and leaving Marguerite forever.

Click here to see the complete score.

Live recording currently unavailable. MIDI available on request.

Full Text

I found my lover
on the beach
Marguerite was
Cold as stone
I swore before heaven
I swore to my lover
If she came back to me
I would never abandon her

I hammered hard
on her cold heart
Until it beat again
Soft at first
but then so loud
It echoed off cliff and cloud
It made me cower

We roved the island, ate the berries
the fish thick in the water
the pure air
sweet with flowers

But there were demons on the island
they stepped in our footprints
so they left no trace
but they disturbed our peace

As it got colder
The demons drew closer
and the pure air
smelled of sulfur

Our baby starved to death
Marguerite half mad with grief
played jigs and reels and trills
and danced with the devils

I walked into a storm
until I found the edge
The edge of oblivion
and there I broke
my promise to my lover
I abandoned her forever