"hist whist" - e e cummings (E. E. Cummings)

Hello, everyone! I'm new here, but I've been composing for a while... For a more formal introduction, please click here.

Anyway, let's get started!

hist whist

little ghostthings

tip-toe

twinkle-toe

little twitchy

witches and tingling

goblins

hob-a-nob hob-a-nob

little hoppy happy

toad in tweeds

tweeds

little itchy mousies

with scuttling

eyes rustle and run and

hidehidehide

whisk

whisk look out for the old woman

with the wart on her nose

what she'll do to yer

nobody knows

for she knows the devil ooch

the devil ouch

the devil

ach the great

green

dancing

devil

devil

devil

devil

wheeEEE

My setting is an ephemeral, through-composed piece intended for SATB Chorus with occasional divisi. Though not by any means atonal, it tends to loosely gravitate around G Minor for most of the piece, ending in a loose Bb Minor. There are many pauses throughout so as to convey a certain breathless, childlike fright. It's pretty theatrical and comical, calling for whispering at some points and screaming / yelling at others. This is, once again, to capture the childish spirit of the poem.

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There are some things that should be noted about the upcoming sound files:

i) I used for the sound files a woodwind quartet setting to better show voice interplay. While it is not a woodwind quartet, such an arrangement is certainly possible in the future. It would require getting rid of the divisi passages, though. Hmm...

ii) Though several fermate are written in the score, I was prompted by steventanoto's following comment to leave them out of the sound files. This is to provide a more cohesive and enjoyable listening experience. Whenever I get a recording (possibly this upcoming Autumn), the pauses will certainly be factored into the final musical product.

iii) The sustained notes at various points of entrance [0:39-0:46] are actually intended to be whispers on the word "whisk". Please refer to Rehearsal [C] in the score to see said event.

iv) Unusual ringing / buzzing sounds occur in the silences of the "for she knows the devil" quasi-stanza [1:02, 1:06, 1:10]. These are intended to represent the screaming or yelling of the words "ooch", "ouch", and "ach", respectively. This occurs in Rehearsal [D] of the score.

v) The final note [1:33-END] is actually intended to be a surprise "wheeEEE" from the entire ensemble.

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Alright, enough disclaimer. :P

Click here for a nicer, UPDATED .WAV file if you're willing to wait. It's nothing too fancy--just the basic soundfonts that come with FINALE 2009.

An UPDATED MIDI and PDF of the sheet music are attached right below, too...

Finale 2009 - [hist whist].pdf

hist whist.mid

I tried to understand the poem and I fail to do so... The music though, sounds very fun and I think it's nice. Your score is really neatly presented and is cluttered with a lot of directions and all.

Maybe it's the nature of the poem, though, to set the music really choppy. It's got really short phrases. And a lot of pauses (though some really short). That probably one thing I find hard to enjoy. But the fault might be mine.

Other than that, it's a cool piece! Again, a live recording would make a huge difference (the choir in my head isn't that great).

I tried to understand the poem and I fail to do so... The music though, sounds very fun and I think it's nice.

I think the poem is a little bit of a challenge if you look too much into it, but I felt like that wasn't Cummings's intention. It is a children's poem, after all...

To me, it's like multiple children exchanging stories about scary monsters. Being kids, they invent onomatopoetic words and gibberish to describe just how terrible these creatures are.

Your score is really neatly presented and is cluttered with a lot of directions and all.

I take great pride in making my scores, so thanks for noticing! :D There is a lot going at once, so it's difficult to avoid some clutter... but I'm glad it was still understandable.

Maybe it's the nature of the poem, though, to set the music really choppy. It's got really short phrases. And a lot of pauses (though some really short). That probably one thing I find hard to enjoy. But the fault might be mine.

Since the poem makes me think of little children talking amongst themselves, it certainly made sense to me for it to be choppy. Children are often surprisingly insightful, but they're also concise: they can give you a paragraph's worth of information within a few words. They mention one monster, and the next thing you know they're talking about something else. You might say that the poem is a juvenile stream of consciousness.

I can definitely see how the pauses in the sound file can detract from the experience... I was so insistent on putting them in that I didn't even think how it would sound synthetically. Perhaps I'll post a new file with the fermate omitted so the listening can be more cohesive.

Other than that, it's a cool piece! Again, a live recording would make a huge difference (the choir in my head isn't that great).

Thanks a lot! I had the first four measures swimming around my head for about a year, so I'm glad I found a way to use it effectively.

I asked my College Chamber Choir teacher about possibly having this premiered next Autumn, so I might be able to get one! :w00t: That would be so exciting...

I see, it's a children's poem. I think I sorta get it, lol. Well, English isn't my strength anyway (my 4th language!) and I thought that's why I can't understand it lol.

Yeah, the choppiness makes more sense to me now. And the randomness! It suits the poem really really well.

"Cluttered" in this case is a compliment! :D Please excuse me as I like to use negative words to compliment... Probably why doesn't always work!

Well, yeah, the pauses in the file are sometimes too long (I'm pretty sure it is right? Since you wrote "very brief" and "a little more time" and so on). A live performance is definitely much better!

And great! About the premiere, I mean. Make sure you get a recording of that! I talked to my own about the possibility about writing for a choir. And he said yes! Hoorah, I just need to wait for the "brief" because I couldn't talk to him (I'm in Sydney having holidays now, before flying all over the place).

Anyway, enough about that, remind me when you post up an mp3 or something!

I see, it's a children's poem. I think I sorta get it, lol. Well, English isn't my strength anyway (my 4th language!) and I thought that's why I can't understand it lol.

Yeah, the choppiness makes more sense to me now. And the randomness! It suits the poem really really well.

Wow, four languages? That's crazy. :blink: Which ones besides English? I know Latin pretty well, but it's kind of useless for speaking purposes. :laugh: I really wish I knew French and Russian... those are pretty languages.

You can refer back to Post #1 for some updated sound files. Maybe that'll make it a little better... Thanks again for your comments!

I love it! :D

What a clever, imaginative setting of what seems to me a difficult poem to treat (but then, cummings always seems to bring out the best in composers).

I love the harmonic palette you've used for this, and the furtive yet mischievous character of the piece. Your interpretation of the poem as a provocative exchange between children works very well indeed.

To me this almost feels like it wants to be part of a larger work, or a cycle of part songs. Have you considered setting other poems by cummings?

We certainly are getting some great choral works posted here lately! Does my heart good.

Thank you so much, Graham! Your comment really means a lot to me.

To me this almost feels like it wants to be part of a larger work, or a cycle of part songs.

I'm glad that you pointed that out. I actually do plan on making this a part of a choral song cycle of three songs. I haven't decided on everything as of yet, but my current idea is to make a Halloween song cycle and include settings of Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky" and Act IV Scene I of Shakespeare's "Macbeth" (the famous "double, double, toil and trouble" scene) along with the completed "hist whist". How cool would that be? :w00t:

Have you considered setting other poems by cummings?

I actually do have another setting of a Cummings poem on my computer based on "the sky was candy" for SSAATTBB Chorus with occasional soli. It's more obviously influenced by Eric Whitacre, but it might be fun to post it, too.

I'll have to make some edits, but I think the next thing I'll post is a semi-Minimalistic piece for Oboe, Eb Clarinet, String Quartet, and Marimba (with two personnel) called "Laboratory Mice". Look for that later.

Hey!

I think you have done a great job with this setting, however i think you might have done yourself in with your text choice. As far as i know, e.e. cummings is still under copyright. So unless you got permission from his estate, you can't use his text.

But great setting though.

Price Walden

Wow I loved this! Your harmony was very interesting, especially in the first couple of measures and I really like how you used a lot of extended vocal techniques. Also, great job putting a really weird poem into a musical form that made sense.

Pricewalden may be right about the copyright issue; cummings didn't die until 1962. But I know of several recent settings of cummings' poetry, so it may not be difficult to obtain permission from the estate.

E.E. Cummings' work is under copyright, still. It's owned by a subsidiary of WW Norton & Company.

The good news is that it's pretty easy to get permission to set his poems to music and there's no charge to do so. Here's how I did it earlier this year. I sent an e-mail to Elizabeth Clementson, the Permissions Manager (Permissions@wwnorton.com) and let her know that I wanted to set a couple of his poems to music. Once I let her know which ones, she sent out a permission letter with the poems listed on it. I signed one of the copies and sent it back to them.

When you are ready to publish your piece (which I enjoyed. Isn't Cummings fun?), you'll need to have your publisher contact her again to make a publishing arrangement, which isn't free. But the publishing houses know how to handle all of that.

Hope this helps some and good luck!