To see a world in a grain of sand
And a heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour.
William Blake, 1803
My lyrics for In Wonder place Blake’s grain of sand in the hand of a child, whose world is both in the moment and ever-expanding.
The life that began in A Single Breath is now becoming aware; in wonder at the universe in which it exists, as one.
The music
When I began writing this piece the singer, Pelham, mentioned that he enjoyed singing in the whole-tone scale and that the song Nature Boy1 was his ‘happy place’. I took this as a cue and used the whole-tone scale for the melody and the essence of Nature Boy, if not the musical content, for the feel.
Using the whole-tone scale lead me to some harmonizations that I probably wouldn’t have discovered otherwise. It was a great example of how working within limitations often takes you to new places creatively.
Celia Craig - oboe
Pelham Andrews - bass voice
Penelope Cashman - piano
Words and music by Glyn Lehmann
Previous sections of As the Universe Expands
1.
2.
3.
Exquisite! Beautiful!
Beautiful 🥰