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Choral Reviewsviews
Choral R e

poetry, singers will understand and performed by a multitude of choirs. especially good fit for concerts cen-

may even feel connected to this It’s easy to understand the appeal tered on remembering, refl ecting,
poem through their own lived ex- of this octavo: the range is manage- celebrating people who have had
perience. Here again, a high school able for even developing choirs, the an impact on our lives, nature, and

treble choir or an adult treble choir flowing piano part is playable by nostalgia. Quartel’s website states:
(collegiate or community) could fi nd less experienced collaborative art- “I remember sets a text refl ecting on
real connection to the text. Despite ists, and the theme of remembering the wonder of the natural world

this being a piece for treble voices, or reflecting on the world around and the people who shape our

the text itself does not refer to any us is applicable to many occasions. lives.” The first two verses refl ect on
gender, allowing more inclusion for The music can be easily analyzed nature and use a variety of “I re-
all singers to participate in the anal- by singers: ABA form, D major to member” followed by a nature-cen-
ysis of the poetry. F Major and return to D major, in a tered topic. “I remember days of

This piece is worth consider- “gently flowing” 3/4, among other sunshine” is the fi rst example. Each
ation—analyzing the text, learning things. of these nature verses ends with “I
about Elizabeth Barrett Browning, The unison setting is great for remember this, my friend.” The
and the myriad of concepts that listening work across the ensem- narrator values the relationship

can be taught through this piece, ble, especially beneficial to devel- with this friend, which comes into
depending on the journey and de- op these concepts at the beginning more detail after these verses.
velopment of the singers. of the ensemble’s time with each The B section transitions from
other. There are many phrasing memories invoking nature to specif-
choices for the singers and con- ically talking about the people and
I remember ductor to make, as well as breath relationships held in these moments.
Music and text by Sarah Quartel management work for the longer The text holds a lot of possibilities
Unison treble, piano phrases. Text stress will also be an to engage the choir and audience.
Oxford University Press easy concept to implement, partly While the piece is in unison, the text
Diffi culty: Easy due to the unison but largely due reflects topics that will be appropri-

Duration: 4 mins to the text setting. The unison set- ate and engaging for all ages, mak-
Performance link (to SA): ting includes an optional descant, a ing this a great octavo for groups
https://www.youtube.com/ nice option for choirs that want to that consist of growing choirs, such
watch?v=wa_VlBcBkE8 sing simple harmony. The unison as community groups or non-audi-
setting will keep choirs honest in tioned collegiate ensembles.
their vowel alignment, treatment of
diphthongs, and balance. In short,
the music can be sung by a variety
of ages and skill levels. It will be a
quick learn for many choirs, with
immediate success on many trans-
Canadian composer Sarah ferable concepts. The trick for the
Quartel wrote I remember as one of conductor will be to decide how to
her first commissions for the Tre- sequence all of the concepts so that

ble Makers Women’s Choir in West they are managed by the singer suc-
Lorne, Ontario. Also available in cessfully.
TB, SABar, and SA voicings, the Text is an additional positive as-
folk-like I remember was one of Quar- pect of this piece, which was writ-
tel’s first commissions and has been ten by the composer. I remember is an

76 CHORAL JOURNAL October 2022 Volume 63 Number 3