Program Note:

I enjoy things which are earthen and macabre. Such things are a refuge in our technological world. I also enjoy the deep symbolism to be found in the poetry of the German Romantics.

I first came across Hebbel's stanzas when listening to Robert Schumann's Waldszenen. Schumann put the stanzas as a preface to Verrufene Stelle, one of the pieces in the set, but he never set the words. Trying to imagine Schumann's perception of the words inspired me to set the text.

I cannot remember precisely when I came across Hölderlin's stanza for the first time, but the phrase “dark light” stood out to me a great deal. Some say these words reference wine, but the description of some sort of otherworldly essence in a cup, dark but somehow also light, feels deeper to me, as hinted by the rest of the poem.

The title comes from the end of the Hölderlin. The “heart's meaning" connects both poems.

Performances:

• Recorded by Luke Sutliff and Ayane Nakajima, Duncan Hall, Houston, Texas, May 12, 2021.