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Lux Nova
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Note from Composer
A few years after I composed Lux Aurumque I began work on a musical called Paradise Lost. The central theme of the story is about an angel without wings who longs to fly, and at the climax of the show the onstage angels sing the word “paradise” over and over, a glorious, cathartic anthem. The song, the big finale in the show, is called Bliss.
When I made the wind symphony transcription of Lux in 2005 I decided to replace the existing middle material with fourteen measures from Bliss. Partly I wanted to take advantage of the forces of the wind symphony, letting the horns sing high and triumphant. But mostly I felt that the addition of the new middle material brought a greater dramatic arc to Lux, and for me at least, greatly affected the way I heard the ending of the piece. With the addition of those fourteen bears the sonic colors of the last twelve measures felt shinier and more, well, golden. And the added concept of “paradise” gave the entire piece a sense of soaring aspiration that I don’t think it had before.
Now the circle is complete: I’ve taken the wind symphony version and reimagined it as a choral octavo. I love both versions and can’t decide which should be out in the world, so with deep humility and gratitude I offer them both. As always, Lux works best with a pure, balanced, shimmering, tone; a strict attention to the dynamic colors; and a slow, luscious pacing.
Lux Nova premiered at the iTunes Festival on 17 September 2014 with the Eric Whitacre Singers.
The Text
Lux,
Calida gravisque pura velut aurum
Et canunt angeli molliter
modo natum.
Light,
warm and heavy as pure gold
and angels sing softly
to the new-born babe.
Edward Esch, b.1970
(Translated to Latin by Charles Anthony Silvestri)
Duration
4.5 minutes
Year of Composition
2014
Licensing
Purchase
US: GIA Publications
UK: Musicroom
World: Music Shop Europe
Digital: GIA Publications
Recording
Music Catalog
- A Boy and a Girl
- All Seems Beautiful To Me
- Alleluia
- Alone
- Animal Crackers Vol. I
- Animal Crackers Vol. II
- as is the sea marvelous
- Child of Wonder
- Cloudburst
- Deep Field
- Enjoy the Silence
- Equus
- Five Hebrew Love Songs
- Fly to Paradise
- Ghost Train
- Glow
- Go, Lovely Rose
- Godzilla Eats Las Vegas!
- Goodnight Moon
- Her Sacred Spirit Soars
- Higher, Faster, Stronger
- Home
- hope, faith, life, love
- Hurt
- i carry your heart
- I Hide Myself
- i thank You God for most this amazing day
- i walked the boulevard
- i will wade out
- Leonardo Dreams of His Flying Machine
- Little Birds
- little man in a hurry
- little tree
- Lux Aurumque
- Lux Nova
- maggie and milly and molly and may
- Mermaids (from Pirates of the Caribbean 4)
- Noisy Wheels of Joy
- Nox Aurumque
- October
- Oculi Omnium
- Paradise Lost
- Prelude in C
- Psalm 137: By the Waters of Babylon
- Sainte-Chapelle
- She Weeps Over Rahoon
- Sing Gently
- Sleep
- Sleep My Child
- Songs of Immortality
- The Boy Who Laughed at Santa Claus
- The Chelsea Carol
- The City and the Sea
- The Gift of the Magi
- the moon is hiding in her hair
- The River Cam
- The Sacred Veil
- The Seal Lullaby
- The Star-Spangled Banner
- The Stolen Child
- This Marriage
- Three Flower Songs
- Three Songs of Faith
- Very Soon
- Water Night
- What If
- When David Heard
- Winter
- With A Lily In Your Hand
- You Rise, I Fall