Credo (2018)

Credo sets a short text by Alfred Kreymborg. When I first read the text, its repeated words, insistent rhythms, and powerful message immediately suggested a choral setting to me. The main motives came into my head while I was trying to sleep one night, and the rest of the piece followed quickly.

The music falls into three main sections: one setting the first line, a second contrasting section that sets all but the last line, and a third that sets the last line of the poem in a variation of the opening section. The text is gradually introduced, with words added to build up each line. The work is minimalist in nature, featuring repeating patterns that shift and change and combine to create an undulating texture, allowing the listener to inhabit and meditate on the poem.