The Rumor of a Secret King (choir)

This piece is about power in flux. The skittering rush of a rumor through a crowd is rendered in nonsense syllables; a long, lyrical line is overlaid, using text that evokes Handel’s “Zadok the Priest”, the traditional coronation hymn, replacing the jubilation of Handel’s anthem with ambivalence and anxiety. A new world is a promise and a threat: What will become of us?

Program note by A. E. Jaques
Please credit A. E. Jaques when reproducing or excerpting this program note