Set me as a seal (2019)
for SATB (divisi) choir, a cappella
Text: Song of Solomon 8:6
Duration: 4 minutes
Difficulty: 3/4
Commissioned by Michael Zaugg for Pro Coro Canada. First performed by Pro Coro Canada in September 2019.
Set me as a seal was a piece written on short order for Michael Zaugg, who casually asked me one day whether I had any pieces which set text from the Song of Solomon. Although that book of the Bible has been an inspiration for me several times, I had never written a setting for a cappella choir. This piece features a series of musical textures to illuminate the brief yet evocative text: rich & fragrant alto melodies, hockets & complex polyphony, and rhythmically aggressive full-choir statements.
Click here to see the complete score.
The audio below is a live recording of the premiere performance by Pro Coro Canada (Michael Zaugg, dir.) in September 2019.
Full Text
Set me as a seal upon your heart,
as a seal upon your arm,
for love is strong as death,
jealousy is fierce as the grave.
Its flashes are flashes of fire,
the very flame of the Lord.