Demeter and Persephone
Jorge Martin
About this work:
a monodrama based on the poem by Alfred Lord Tennyson, which he wrote after the death of his son. In it, Demeter tells her daughter Persephone what it was like for her to lose her to the Lord of the Underworld, how she scoured the earth looking for her until she finally wrung from the gods the concession that Persephone may return to the earth for 3 months (the spring). Demeter foresees the death of these pitiless gods and their replacement by a more loving order — the subtext being, the replacement of a cyclical order by a more teleological one, or paganism by Christianity. -- The work is a tour de force for dramatic soprano and pianist alike.
Version: for soprano and piano
Year composed: 2000
Duration: 00:38:00
Ensemble type: Voice, Solo or With Chamber or Jazz Ensemble:Solo Voice with Keyboard
Instrumentation: 1 Piano, 1 Soprano
Instrumentation notes: dramatic lyric soprano