Candey | sustain (v.)

sustain (v.)

PERUSALSCORE

for low voice, cello, and piano by Griffin Candey — on a text by Jess Janz for Ryan McKinny, Kathleen Kelly, John Walz, and Kevork

Mourad

PERUSALSCORE

sustain (v.)

one song for bass-baritone, cello, and piano

PERUSALSCORE

Griffin Candey 2020

sustain(v.)

POETRY

BY:

Jess Janz

COMPOSED BY:

Griffin Candey

FOR:

Ryan McKinny, bass-baritone — Kathleen Kelly, piano

John Walz, cello — Kevork Mourad, visual art

PERUSALSCORE

sustain(v).

Itiswritten:youwillsurvivethistheskyfalling,thedrawnoutwinter, theheavysilencethatcoatstheair, thecreepingdoubt,thesilentanswer, thesecretstucktotheroofofyourmouth, theuglytruth,theunfaircall, theimpossibletask,therollingfallout, thebitterspitandwretchedsadness andallofthethings you’renotreadytofeel.

Youwillsurvivethis,Iamcertain inthesameway Iamcertainof thewaymorningcomes(steady andontime,she putsthekettleon).

approximately3½minutes— completedinMarquette,MIinMay2020 writtenduringthe2020pandemicandshelter-in-place

Program Note

Sustain (v.) came about as a little message of hope during the beginning of the pandemic (a message of hope to others, but also to myself at a very uncertain time.) Ryan McKinny, the incredible bass-baritone who I met interning at Glimmerglass some years before, had put together a video series during the rocky beginning of 2020, when everyone had questions and no one had answers, when everything seemed like it was growing around our throats. Seeing his video series, meant to any kind of comforting or bright or entertaining, whichever people needed at the time, I reached out and offered to be a part of it, however I could. At the same time, I ran across my friend Jess Janz’s poem, sustain (v.), which begins with the line: “it is written: you will survive this.” This surety, as unguaranteed as all of ours was at the time, felt like a rock, and I needed that rock— I shared this poem with Ryan, and he agreed. What emerged was this song, featuring Ryan, Kathy Kelly on piano, Úna O’Riordan on cello, and absolutely gorgeous visuals by Kevork Mourad.

Instrumentation

bass-baritone, cello, and piano

Duration: 4'

First printing, August 2024

sustain (v.)

= c 60-66}

distant — delicate dal niente, nat.

for voice, cello, and piano by Grifn Candey — on a text by Jess Janz for Ryan McKinny, Kathleen Kelly, John Walz, and Kevork Mourad

gradually to sul tasto, decresendo (even if it afects clarity of tone)

pedal liberally throughout

Cello

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