Life Has Loveliness |
for SATB choir, a cappella
Duration: ~3'30"
The title Life has Loveliness is taken from the first line of the poem Barter by Sara Teasdale, from which this piece borrows its text. For the first two stanzas, Teasdale presents the loveliness that life has to offer, such as "blue waves whitened on a cliff" and "music like a curve of gold." In this poem, life is personified as a salesperson with whom we can barter. The final stanza shifts to tell us the cost of loveliness, which, for all the hardships endured, is worth any cost.
The piece opens with the declarative statement, "Life has loveliness to sell" and recurs in varying forms throughout. Different tonal centers are visited as more examples of "beautiful and splendid things" are visited. As the cost of loveliness is introduced, new ideas evolve toward a climatic moment. The opening theme is echoed in a softly stated coda as we contemplate the value of loveliness.
BARTER
Life has loveliness to sell,
All beautiful and splendid things,
Blue waves whitened on a cliff,
Soaring fire that sways and sings,
And children's faces looking up
Holding wonder like a cup.
Life has loveliness to sell,
Music like a curve of gold,
Scent of pine trees in the rain,
Eyes that love you, arms that hold,
And for your spirit's still delight,
Holy thoughts that star the night.
Spend all you have for loveliness,
Buy it and never count the cost;
For one white singing hour of peace
Count many a year of strife well lost,
And for a breath of ecstasy
Give all you have been, or could be.
-Sara Teasdale (1917)
Duration: ~3'30"
The title Life has Loveliness is taken from the first line of the poem Barter by Sara Teasdale, from which this piece borrows its text. For the first two stanzas, Teasdale presents the loveliness that life has to offer, such as "blue waves whitened on a cliff" and "music like a curve of gold." In this poem, life is personified as a salesperson with whom we can barter. The final stanza shifts to tell us the cost of loveliness, which, for all the hardships endured, is worth any cost.
The piece opens with the declarative statement, "Life has loveliness to sell" and recurs in varying forms throughout. Different tonal centers are visited as more examples of "beautiful and splendid things" are visited. As the cost of loveliness is introduced, new ideas evolve toward a climatic moment. The opening theme is echoed in a softly stated coda as we contemplate the value of loveliness.
BARTER
Life has loveliness to sell,
All beautiful and splendid things,
Blue waves whitened on a cliff,
Soaring fire that sways and sings,
And children's faces looking up
Holding wonder like a cup.
Life has loveliness to sell,
Music like a curve of gold,
Scent of pine trees in the rain,
Eyes that love you, arms that hold,
And for your spirit's still delight,
Holy thoughts that star the night.
Spend all you have for loveliness,
Buy it and never count the cost;
For one white singing hour of peace
Count many a year of strife well lost,
And for a breath of ecstasy
Give all you have been, or could be.
-Sara Teasdale (1917)
Your browser does not support viewing this document. Click here to download the document.