| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Louis Lambert by Honore de Balzac: in the eye to demolish obstacles at the behest of genius, thunders in
the voice, or filters, in spite of dissimulation, through the human
frame? The current of that sovereign fluid, which, in obedience to the
high pressure of thought or of feeling, flows in a torrent or is
reduced to a mere thread, and collects to flash in lightnings, is the
occult agent to which are due the evil or the beneficent efforts of
Art and Passion--intonation of voice, whether harsh or suave,
terrible, lascivious, horrifying or seductive by turns, thrilling the
heart, the nerves, or the brain at our will; the marvels of the touch,
the instrument of the mental transfusions of a myriad artists, whose
creative fingers are able, after passionate study, to reproduce the
Louis Lambert |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Gambara by Honore de Balzac: "Abdallah, the father of Ayesha,--the only maiden Mahomet has found
really innocent, wherefore he changed the name of Abdallah to Abubekir
(the father of the virgin),--comes forward with Ayesha and sings
against the chorus, in strains which rise above the other voices and
supplement the air sung by Kadijah in contrapuntal treatment. Omar,
the father of another maiden who is to be Mahomet's concubine, follows
Abubekir's example; he and his daughter join in to form a quintette.
The girl Ayesha is first soprano, Hafsa second soprano; Abubekir is a
bass, Omar a baritone.
"Mahomet returns, inspired. He sings his first /bravura/ air, the
beginning of the /finale/ (E major), promising the empire of the world
Gambara |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Iron Puddler by James J. Davis: Americans don't like to eat. They begrudge the time they have to
spend at the table. They get it over as soon as they can. They
seem to take it like medicine; the worse the medicine tastes, the
better it is for them. An egg is something that is pretty hard to
spoil in the cooking. Yet some of these boarding-house cooks are
such masters of the art that they can fix up a plate of steak,
eggs and potatoes and make them all as tasteless as a chip of
wood. I've had this kind of fare for the last few years, and
getting back to your table is the best part of home-coming."
Father was still a puddler, and to show my appreciation of all
he had done for me, I went into the mill every afternoon that
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The fourth excerpt represents the element of Earth. It speaks of physical influences and the impact of the unseen on the visible world, and is drawn from Love Songs by Sara Teasdale: I am the pool of gold
When sunset burns and dies --
You are my deepening skies;
Give me your stars to hold.
Moods
I am the still rain falling,
Too tired for singing mirth --
Oh, be the green fields calling,
Oh, be for me the earth!
I am the brown bird pining
To leave the nest and fly --
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