Beyond Romance (We're On Our Own Now)
Benjamin Bierman
About this work:
Beyond Romance (We’re On Our Own Now) is a song cycle for soprano, tenor, and piano (Benjamin Bierman, music; Earl Shuman, lyrics). The piece explores the emotional lives of a couple in the middle stage of their married life. They reminisce about their early lives together: how they met, their courtship, their first apartment, and having children. As the children leave home, however, their relationship undergoes severe stresses, including infidelity. How these issues are dealt with is the dramatic undercurrent of this story.
The work is eclectic, merging an art song sensibility with jazz, Latin jazz, and musical theater. This version has piano accompaniment. The creators are hoping to expand the work into a theatrical piece.
Year composed: 2006
Duration: 00:25:00
Ensemble type: Voice, Solo or With Chamber or Jazz Ensemble:Two or More Solo Voices with Keyboard
Instrumentation: 1 Piano, 1 Soprano, 1 Tenor