Shadow River
for SSA Chorus and Piano
Poem by E. Pauline Johnson
Published with Elaine Hagenberg Music
This energetic piece for treble voices sweeps listeners into the rapids of E. Pauline Johnson's poem entitled Shadow River. Bold vocal entrances cascade into bright harmonies as the piano creates an undercurrent of lively folk rhythms. As the river slows, the music floats into an elegant, reflective section, portraying the "shadows and the dreaming." Shadow River will display your treble choir's vocal and emotional range while taking audiences on a beautiful journey!
A stream of tender gladness,
Of filmy sun, and opal tinted skies;
Of warm midsummer air
that lightly lies
In mystic rings,
Where softly swings
The music of a thousand wings
That almost tones to sadness.
Mine is the undertone;
The beauty, strength, and power of the land
Will never stir or bend at my command;
But all the shade
Is marred or made,
If I but dip my paddle blade;
And it is mine alone.
Midway ‘twixt earth and heaven,
A bubble in the pearly air I seem
To float upon the sapphire floor, a dream
Of clouds of snow,
Above, below,
Drift with my drifting, dim and slow,
As twilight drifts to even.
For others Fame
And Love’s red flame,
And yellow gold: I only claim
The shadows and the dreaming.
