who are you 
electro-acoustic composition

who are you,little i

(five or six years old) peering from some high

window: at the gold

of november sunset

(and feeling:that if day has to become night

this is a beautiful way)

—–

Drawing inspiration in part from Luciano Berio’s Thema (Omaggio a Joyce) as well as from Edgard Varèse’s Poème électronique, the work’s genesis derives from two simple readings of the above poem by E. E. Cummings: the first by an elderly British man, and the second by a seven-year-old Singaporean boy. The work begins like Berio’s with a simple unadulterated playback of the first recording, but develops like Varèse’s in thematic sections, freely reinterpreting the text into a musical poem. This is done solely with materials from the original recordings, organically transformed in a variety of ways: clips reversed, changed in pitch, lengthened, reverberating through tunnels, transformed into choral landscapes, and fragmented to accentuate particular characteristics of the words. Language has thus been exploited for its ambient consonants (‘sssss’) and vowels (such as a synthesis of ‘who’ and ‘you’). By breaking down its constituent parts and thereafter re-piecing them in a different manner, the work takes after Cumming’s poetic impulse in investigating text from fresh perspectives.

who are you

The Past Is A Different Country (backing track)
Music by Gayle Sim
Lyrics by Michelle Tan

-----

Do you recall how they said

The grass just looks greener on the other side?
But you said you wouldn’t know until you’ve tried…

Do you know that when you left

I searched our soil and just found something to lose
Why did I feel so ungrounded and confused?

So maybe it's true…
That the past is a different country
Where the bright sun of summer
Lights the dim alleys of memory

Just imagine a country called
Past with a capital P
Where people walk
on streets called Memory
The ground must be soft -
Feel it sinking under your feet
The air must be fresh
with all their flowers so sweet
The girls there must
drink rose tea all day long
And maybe the boys
ride bicycles singing songs
Pink dust settles like clouds
on children glowing with light
And with every slow sunset
People forget how they fight

I bet you’ve forgotten
the capital of this country
You walk these grounds
like it’s a mere shadow of memory
Your step’s so heavy
on all our rough-cut streets
The air here’s polluted, I know-
The factories don't sleep.
The girls here – well
maybe let’s not go there…
And boys won’t dream to
dress in what you now wear
Dust settles on childhood
past, forgotten, far away
The sun sets so late here
we just work and forget how to play

So maybe it's true…
That the past is a different country
Where the bright sun of summer
Lights the dim alleys of memory

So maybe it's true
That the past is a prettier country
And the blue of morning dew
Tells us we’ll just have to start anew...

The Past is a Different Country

There's A Place/Homebound (backing track)
Music and Lyrics by Michelle Tan

-----

[ALL]
There’s a place
For all of us
A corner a space
For all of us

And some might call it a house 
or a flat, an apartment,
even an office! or just - a room
But there’s always a place
That we can make our home

[FATHER]
Peter
I’m so proud of you
You’ve done well in so short a time
At last you’ve reached the finish line
Pass on the work, you can relax now
Listen to your pa for a bit:
your flight back, I’ll see to it

[PETER]
Father
It doesn’t make sense, but…
I’ve flown so far from where I was
I’m no longer a lost cause
And even though I complained before
The sun and warmth is now what I adore

And I’ve learnt to love what I do
And I’m leaning towards the light of always summer

[(ENSEMBLE) PETER & SUMMER]
[(There’s a place) that I’ve found]
[(For all of us) me]
[(A corner a space) in my heart]
[(For all of us) you]

And some might call it a house 
or a flat, an apartment,
even an office! or just - a room
But there’s always a place
That we can make our home

[SUMMER]
There’s a place that I’ve found
For me
A corner a space in my heart
For you

[PETER, spoken]
So I can stay? Really?
No longer bound - I’m free!

[ALL]
We are homebound
In our country that doesn’t sleep
In our country that works all week
In our country with dreams we seek

We are homebound
In a country of bubble tea
In a country of hokkien mee
There’s really no place I’d rather be

We are, we are
Homebound.

[ALL]
There’s a peace
For all of us
A quiet release
For all of us…

There's A Place/Homebound

Always Summer (backing track)
Music by Gayle Sim
Lyrics by Michelle Tan

-----

Just the smell of fresh grass after rain
Just to taste rose on the tip of my tongue
Just the sight of sunflowers
Leaning towards the light of always summer
Is enough for my heart to dream

Just to sit ‘midst the splendour of stalks
Just to hear birds on the branches of trees
Just the sun warm on my skin 
Glowing bright from the light of always summer
Is enough for my soul to beam

Here there is no room for darkness
Just a little room for my flower shop and me
And it seems like when it is always summer
Even the petals seem to whisper
And the colours start to dance

Here where it is always -

Always Summer

Love What I Do (backing track)
Music and Lyrics by Michelle Tan

-----

[SAMANTHA]
I want to be the very best-
Well, not really. Second best’s fine too
I don’t have to be good at everything
I just want to love what I do

Flowers are pretty but sometimes it’s silly
To just sit in a flower bed
Maybe I’ll be a famous TV star
And have people give me flowers instead!

Or maybe I’ll be a musician
And play the tambourine
I’ll sing and dance and own the stage
[PETER] But you can’t dance!
[SAMANTHA] That’s mean :(
 
I don’t have to be good at everything
I just want to love what I do

Or maybe an author! or a poet!
Make magic grow out of a page
Tell stories of my life and those I love
Appeal to every age

I don’t have to be good at everything
I just want to love what I do

[PETER]
Or you’ll have to grow up and forget all these wild dreams
And just take what life has planned for you

[SAMANTHA]
But while I’m still young and I still can hope
I’ll still hope and still love what I do

Love What I Do

In A Moment (backing track)
Music by Aaron Chen
Lyrics by Michelle Tan

-----

[PETER]
Just a moment
Give me just a moment
I just need one moment…

I’ve had my caffeine and a good night’s sleep
Prepped all the files and the things I need
The client’s here now, let’s get down to the deed
We’ve all worked so hard so let’s take this leap!

In a moment
I’ll have to speak out loud
I’ll have to stand my ground
I’ll have to prove my worth

In a moment
I’ll have to stand out proud
No time for clowning around or aimless mirth

(to client) Have you had your caffeine and a good night’s sleep?
I’ve prepped all the files and the things that you need
We’re all here now so let us sign the deed
You’ve got to take some risks to make a leap

In a moment
You’ll hear us strong and loud
Our teas are some of the best you'll find on earth

[ENSEMBLE]
His sheer sincerity
Momentous clarity
Momentary doubt
The final verdict’s out

In a moment…

[PETER]
It’s my moment!


In A Moment

To Be (backing track)
Music by Aaron Chen
Lyrics by Michelle Tan

-----

[PETER]
To belong
to be home
to be free
and not alone

to be still
to believe
to have grown
into a home

And not to be
in between
and be unmoved
be unseen

I long to see you understand
what it means to me

[FATHER]
To belong
to be home
Can’t berate
Please be strong

to be still
to believe
to now grow
into your home

Not to be
Bittersweet
Not be stuck
in memory

[PETER]
I long to see you understand

[FATHER]
I long to see you try

[BOTH]
I long to see you understand
I long to see you try

Just because
[PETER] It’s where I’m born
[FATHER] It’s where you’re born

[PETER] It’s not to be
[FATHER] It’s meant to be

keinezeit

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