LEE HOIBY
THE SERPENT for High Voice and Piano
to Leontyne Price
The Serpent Theodore Roethke
Lee Hoiby
Allegro giocoso
Allegro giocoso
mf 5 p
p
9
p
sing.
There
f
was.
pp Adapted from the poem "The Serpent" by Theodore Roethke from the book WORDS FOR THE WIND © Copyright 1950 by Theodore Roethke.
There
There was a Ser - pent who had to
was.
mf
f © Copyright 1985 by Southern Music Publishing Co., Inc. International Copyright Secured All Rights Reserved
2 14
Ser - pent - -
He sim - ply gave up
ing.
Be - cause.
p
18
Be -
f
cause.
p
mf
23
He did - n't like his Kind of Life;
p
p
mf
He could - n't find a pro - per Wife;
3 27
He
p
was
31
He
35
a
Ser - pent
with
a
Soul;
got
no
Pleas
-
ure
down
his
Hole.
f
And
so,
of
p
course,
he
Sing
he
4 39
had
to
Sing,
And
44
A - ny thing!
did,
like
sf
Ah
f
pp
48
f
Ah
pp
Ah
p
f
11
138
free
sssee,"
he said, with a
colla voce
pp
port.
Ser - pent's Leer,
"I'm ssser - ious a - bout
146
with man - y
a shriek
the
as
the Birds
Woods Re - sound
-
ed
p
flew
off
cresc.
Tempo I
Tempo I
And
ritard.
Ca reer!"
my SSSing -ing
p
ritard.
142
12
150
2
to
the
5
153
riten.
end
riten.
f
of
Next
6
ff
A tempo
sfz
ff
5
Week.
157
A tempo
6
sfz
23 June 1979 New York City duration c. 4'30"