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A Bigger Table Music Reviews

Cesis (1577–after 1619). As a nun composer, Cesis Thus Spake the Mother
found creative ways to evade strict church rules, even Melissa Dunphy
using instruments like the cornett and trombone in her Text by Sri Anada
music. In 1619 she published Motetti Spirituali, a collec- Mormolyke Press, 2024
tion of motets for two to twelve voices. “Maria Magda- SSA unaccompanied (3:30)
lena et altera Maria” is a small-scale, unaccompanied
duet from this publication and is one of the shortest
pieces in the collection. The piece celebrates Easter,
and the text is in Latin from Matthew 28:1, 6–7.

Translation:
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary
went to the place of the sepulcher.
“Jesus, whom you seek, is not here:
He is risen, as he said. Melissa Dunphy sets the powerful words of Indian
He goes before you into Galilee: poet, mystic, and philosopher Sri Ananda in Thus Spa-
there shall ye see him.” ke the Mother. Ananda’s text comes from his 1919 col-
lection Snow-Birds, written during his first few years in
The piece is set in three sections in ABB form. The Norway, where he lived for the latter part of his life.
first section focuses on the story’s female characters: Ananda is credited with being one of the first to bring
Mary Magdalene and the “other” Mary, and also Indian philosophy and teachings to Europe. Dunphy’s
sets the scene at the empty tomb. The second section setting is accessible in its part-writing and singable me-
quotes the words of the angel. The last section repeats lodic lines but provides a challenge in the weaving of
the second section, including the same music and the textures and modal harmonies, making it appropriate
text. The piece concludes with a brief coda in which for collegiate, community or advanced high school tre-
the final notes are prolonged, creating a strong sense ble ensembles.
of closure and rest. The two voices alternate between “Thus Spake the Mother” is set in three sections that
imitation and homophony. The text-setting is mostly transition through tonal centers to highlight the meaning
syllabic, with a few melismatic moments in the sopra- of the text. The first section, set in C mixolydian, begins
no. This elegant duet requires sopranos with flexibility with a fanfare-like motive of “Forward!” and forward
for the melismas and is a good choice for treble choirs motion is achieved through alternating antiphonal and
(including college, adult, high school and advanced homophonic passages. In the second section, the text
middle school), especially for those with a small num- changes from declamatory for “cross the ditches, break
ber of singers. Doubling of the vocal parts by instru- the hedges, and march” to a more nebulous setting of
ments—such as flutes or recorders, or adding chordal “seize the secret of the lightless sea, scan and control
support with an organ—would be appropriate and can what mighty powers lie hidden in the soul’s unfathomed
help support the singers. The work was originally com- deeps.” In this section, Dunphy keeps the motives from
posed for cantus and bassus. For this edition, the pitch the first section but uses modal and tonal shifts to depict
has been transposed up the interval of a minor third to the ambiguity of the text. While these shifting centers
accommodate two treble voices. can be complex, Dunphy’s voice leading makes the
transitions seamless through predominantly half-step
Xinke Shen motion.
MM student The moral of the story is set in the third section,
University of Arizona in which the “Mother” reveals the purpose of her de-
mands. She states, “Nature will bring her long-saved

66 CHORAL JOURNAL November/December 2025 Volume 66 Number 4