2020 Uhrenstellmusik II on a poem by Sergey Esenin, 13`, for alto solo

Helena Sorokina’s decision to develop a project dealing with the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, Shades of Solitude, gave cause for the commissioning of many solo pieces for alto voice, all of which eventually got gracefully executed in the safe hands of the talented Latvian singer. Her invitation to participate in her project came upon me at a time when I was about to start working on The Patron Saint of Liars and contemplating its vocal style. Helena’s voice, the subject of the project and her fluency with the Russian language have encouraged me to set a short poem by Sergey Esenin to music, one without a title from the book Nie zhaleyu, nie zovu, nie plachu (I don’t regret, I don’t call out, I don’t cry).

It’s already evening.
The dew sparkles on the nettles
I stand by the road
Leaning against a willow tree.

The light of the full moon
Is falling right on our roof
Somewhere far off
I hear the song of a nightingale.

It’s nice and warm,
As in winter by the stove.
And the birches stand,
Like huge candles.

And in the distance along the river,
Perhaps, at the edge of the forest,
A sleepy watchman is banging
His hollow wooden rattle.

“Kolotushka“ is the name of a traditional wooden rattle that forest guards would carry along as they patrolled the wilderness to make one of two kinds of sounds. Clattering the rattle violently would function as a kind of alarm signal to alert the people nearby to a problem or condition that requires urgent attention, whereas the gentle knocking that accompanied the guard’s pace would let them know he is on duty and be assured of safety. It is the latter sound Esenin’s poem is referring to, and as such it constitutes a major component the poem.