Sometimes you stumble upon cool things. No, I don't mean that internet site, just real life stuff. Other times... not so much. I was chilling in the music building when I found a couple of scores that looked interesting. One was a two-part mass. The other caught my attention for the reason of its text: select writings of Thomas Jefferson.
Now, I said, that sounds cool. It'll probably be VERY patriotic and say something about America and freedom. Looking back, I can confidently say I was correct about that guess. In regards to my opener: is this a cool thing or not? In many ways it was.
Starting off the work, is the first movement, entitled "The God who gave us life." The whole of the text is "The God who gave us life gave us liberty at the same time; the hand of force may destroy but cannot disjoin them." As far as a text, it's not too bad: it's not too long or too wordy. The music lends a contemplative air to it. The song states a fact that the text-writer assumes as a basic truth.
However, getting into the other movements, the text and tone change. The texts for the second and third movements are over two paragraphs long, and the fourth consists of a paragraph and a recapitulation of the first text.
For me, it's not the text length that makes an ill-fit. It's the word choice of Thomas Jefferson. He is an intelligent and erudite man, but his lofty language and multi-syllabic words are not always a good fit for the music. I almost giggled at the line "Our internal resources are great." It just doesn't work for a dramatic text. It sounds like office lingo. I know that it is not, and that the whole of the text is patriotic, but it still feels too wordy.
Another issue I have is the nature of the text. Thomas Jefferson writes lofty words about the nation, but their usage in a dramatic piece like this pushes the patriotism almost into jingo territory. Part of my annoyance is colored by a knowledge of history: I remember the condition of non-WASPs at that time when presented with the words "Our cause is just" or "We cannot endure the infamy and guilt ... which inevitably waits them if we basely entail hereditary bondage upon them." Whatever his intent was in those lines, I can't help what comes to mind. But that's just an issue I'd have to take up with Thomas Jefferson and not the composer, Randall Thompson.
Overall, it's fun to listen to for kicks. However, the text utilized is not quite right for musical setting. Because of the wordiness of the author, the music comes off as stilted at points. However, it would make good listening on the Fourth of July.
AMERICA!
