EXPLORE THE SCORE | She Who Continues by Natalie Draper
Part of a series introducing our readers to works commissioned by Sparks & Wiry Cries, published through E. C. Schirmer.
She Who Continues is an art song cycle for soprano and piano, composed by Natalie Draper on texts by Judy Grahn. It was originally written for soprano Jennifer Holloway and pianist Kathleen Kelly, who premiered the piece in New York City as a part of Spark’s 2019 sparksLIVE Festival on the concert #MeToo: Pathways to Healing.
Thematically, the three songs are united in an exploration of the treatment of women in society, ultimately celebrating women’s strength and perseverance.
Click to expand this excerpt from "I. The Ice Queen"
The first song, “I. The Ice Queen,” describes a woman who is at odds with her own body, feelings, and opinions. The piano writing's bell-like quality and sparse texture evoke chilliness and distance, underlining the theme of transparency in the poetry. The vocal line grows in intensity, with larger and larger intervallic leaps betraying the singer’s frustration with the situation.
The second song of the set, “II. The enemies of She Who call her various names,” requires the soprano to adopt a neutral expression and a cold, factual delivery while singing extremely insulting words often leveled at women— words one might be surprised to find in any song. These objectifying and demeaning words increase in frequency and volume until finally, on the final page, the composer instructs the singer to sing “a piece of shit” with sudden rage, only to repeat it again with a neutral expression as in the beginning. This shocking but effective delivery calls on us to reflect on the mundanity of abuse leveled towards women.
“Draper’s tonal language is beautiful, mellifluous, and adept, even (and especially) when it underlies the ugliest expressions of the text”
Click to expand this excerpt from "II. The enemies of She Who call her various names"
The final song, “III. She Who Continues,” features long, legato vocal lines complemented by an interlocking rhythm in the piano, giving the sense of perpetual forward motion. The poetry, a celebration of all women’s resiliency through the unnamed “she,”— “she who continues, she who bears, she who cares…”—culminates in the phrase “I am the woman,” as the singer calls upon collective womanhood to identify her own strengths.
This score, along with our other genre-expanding commissions, is available on our Score Store and through E. C. Schirmer.
She Who Continues: A Song Cycle for Soprano Voice and Piano (2023)
Natalie Draper (1985-), on poetry by Judy Grahn.
Vocal range: Bb3-Bb5
Duration: 10:30
