On May 19, 2023, the Cincinatti May Festival Chorus presents the world premiere of James Lee III’s new choral work Breaths of Universal Longings. Commissioned by the Cincinnati May Festival in celebration of its 150th anniversary, the four-movement, 28-minute work is scored for soloists, SATB chorus, SATB youth chorus and orchestra. Music director Juanjo Mena conducts the premiere which takes place in Cincinnati’s Music Hall. Lee will participate in a pre-concert talk hosted by Matthew Swanson, the Cincinnati May Festival Director of the Youth Chorus. The concert will be live-streamed, and to view the world premiere, click here.
Lee shares some comments about his new choral work. “Breaths of Universal Longings is a work in four movements that is inspired primarily by the concepts of joy and belonging. It is a work that celebrates the power of the voice and singing. It is also about shared humanity and the universality of singing.
“The first movement, ‘From Dust We Were Made’ employs biblical texts from Genesis 2:7, and Job 38:7 in which I paraphrased the words written. The initial idea is that mankind was created from the dust of the ground, the breath of life was breathed into humanity’s nostrils, and then man (and woman) become living beings that would rise, and joyfully sing as the morning stars also sang together and all of creation shouted for joy! Movement two, ‘Now and Then’ was written by Charles Bertram and is a reflection on a long life lived and a comparison of the actions in one’s youth with the last years of one’s life. The following strophe from the poem illustrates the sentiments of the poet: ‘To life’s sun-setting years, My feet have come—Alas! And through its hopes and fears, again I shall not pass.’ There are contrasting episodes of music that alternate with the unifying melodic passages on the texts ‘All life is built from song’ and ‘All life is built from love.’”
He continues. “As the work continues, the third movement, ‘Reflection’ utilizes texts written by members of the May Festival Youth Chorus. This movement includes texts that search for joy, singing, longing, and belonging. The music from this movement was partially inspired by the aftermath of being in mandatory lockdowns and quarantines during the COVID-19 crisis of 2020 and 2021. A beautiful part of the texts used in this movement comes from the words ‘Into this day we must rise as a sun, out from this darkness to shine.’ The last movement, ‘Seeking Joy’ uses texts from William Henry Davies poem with the same name. The music here continues in a steady ascent from a thin texture of tranquility that seeks to musically convey the opening words, ‘Joy, how I sought thee!’ As the texts continue to expand on the acts of an individual searching for joy in various places and not being fulfilled, the music comes to a decisive change in course with the words ‘Joy, I have found thee!’ Then, the music continues to bring forth passages of joy, glee, awe, and exuberance in an increasingly dense texture until the last explosive measure.” View and listen to Lee’s additional insight here.
More Lee news: On May 20 and 21, the Richmond Symphony performs Lee’s work Amer’ican — led by Lidiya Yankovskaya — in its season finale concerts at the Dominion Energy Center.