Voicing/Instrumentation: TTTBB a cappella
Lyrics: Stacey Philipps
Duration: 3:30
Difficulty: moderate-advanced (GIA level 4)
Formerly entitled "Close Distancing" for SSATB
This low voice arrangement commissioned by Chor Leoni
Practice tracks available here
 
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 piece under its original title, "Close Distancing," is also available for SSATB here.