Voicing/Instrumentation: SSATB a cappella
Lyrics: Stacey Philipps
Duration: 3:30
Difficulty: moderate-advanced (GIA level 4)
 
This yearning piece evokes the universal experience of missing those who are gone, whether temporarily or permanently, and originated as a response to the world retreating from COVID-19 in early 2020, when many connected via video calls to stay in touch from a safe distance. The feeling of constant longing while apart starts musically with the opening sound of a persistent unison hum; carries through in repeating harmonies that call to mind revolving, similar days and the struggle to connect and hear each other; explores tension and relief in suspensions and sometimes momentary resolutions, and dissolves into a vocalese of the ever-present ache of wanting to be together. The voices begin together, sometimes drop out, occasionally cross wires (and vocal lines), gradually falling apart like one does when grieving – and during the pandemic, like the sound delay of technology that's not quite up to real-time interactions – finally arriving ambiguously in an undefined space, the hollowness of an open fifth.
 
I see you
I hear you
I miss you
 
This score is also available for TTTBB a cappella (renamed So Close) here. Low voice arrangement commissioned by Chor Leoni.