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The Land of Nod
Sarah FitzPatrick, Soprano; Brian Jung, Piano

Click here to view an excerpt from the score!
(requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)

About this piece:
  The Land of Nod was written in October of 1999, although I was experimenting with ideas for the piece as early as April, 1999.  The piece was written at the request of Marquita Duke for her Senior Recital.  Having just completed a large work for percussion ensemble and a very rhythmic trio, I wanted to take this opportunity to write something with a longer, more flowing melodic line.  The accompaniment is sparse and open, exposing the vocal line.

The text is taken from Robert Louis Stevenson's A Child's Garden of Verses:
 The Land of Nod 
from A Child's Garden of Verses

At breakfast on through all the day
At home among my friends I stay,
But every night I go abroad
Afar into the land of Nod.

All by myself I have to go,
With none to tell me what to do --
All alone besides the streams
And up the mountain-sides of dreams.

Try as I like to find the way,
I never can get back by day,
Nor can remember plain and clear
The curious music that I hear.

           -Robert Louis Stevenson
 In writing this song, I tried to capture the childlike innocence and beauty inherent to the text.

Since it's premier, I have revised the score for "The Lad of Nod."  A recording of the revised version is not available at this moment, but will be included in the next update.

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