Work Information
Eric Whitacre : Higher, Faster, Stronger
| Commissioned by BBC Radio 3
First performance 29 August 2012 at the BBC Proms, Royal Albert Hall, London by the BBC Singers, Eric Whitacre Singers, ensemblebash (percussion) and Christopher Glynn (piano), conducted by the composer. |
| Publisher |
Chester Music Ltd |
Category |
Chorus a cappella / Chorus plus 1 instrument |
| Year Composed |
2012 |
Duration |
8 Minutes |
| Solo Voice(s) |
Soprano |
Orchestration |
triple SATB chorus/3perc/pf |
| Availability |
Sale from Musicroom or Music Dispatch Explain this... |
Programme Note
Inspired by the Olympic motto ‘Citius, Altius, Fortius’ (Faster, Higher, Stronger), I collaborated
with my close friend, poet and historian Charles Anthony Silvestri to source the perfect text - an
Olympian ode:
Best of all things is water;
but gold, like a gleaming fire by night,
outshines all pride of wealth beside …
Pindar (c.522–443 BC)
These lines are sung in Latin by solo soprano through the central section, almost as a prayer:
Praestantissima quidem est aqua,
et aurum, ardens ignis velut nocte,
fulget superbas, inter divitas.
EW
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