The Mets support local artists writing original works. Our Halloween concert featured three “spooky” pieces.
The Raven music by our director Laurie de Leonne, poem by Edgar Allen Poe
“The Raven” was commissioned in 2019 by the professional SSAA a cappella ensemble Corvid Ensemble in Seattle. Drawing on excerpts from Edgar Allan Poe’s iconic poem, the piece traces a psychological descent through grief, obsession, and unraveling. The score employs extended vocal techniques—including vowel bounces and glides—to evoke raven calls and create an immersive, atmospheric sound world.
https://www.lauriedeleonne.com/
One Need Not be a Chamber to be Haunted music by our collaborative pianist Nathan Shiu, poem by Emily Dickinson
The inception of "One Need Not Be a Chamber - To Be Haunted" all began with a cluster chord, meant to invoke a feeling of unease. To further contribute to that disconcerting feeling, the piece introduces singers and listeners to lesser-used extended vocal and musical techniques such as whispering at random times and freeze tones to create the dense, eerie cluster chord.
http://www.nathanshiutenor.com/
Goblin Market music by Met Singers member and local composer Lauren McLaren Thomas, poem by Christina Rossetti
“Goblin Market” is a quirky and theatrical seven-movement piece that illustrates the temptation of a young woman by strange “fruit-merchant men.” Written entirely for treble voices and piano, the choir takes on the role of Rossetti's sinister goblins as well as the sisters Lizzie and Laura. Recurring melodies emphasize the poem's themes of longing and desire, and the piece closes with a sentimental lullaby inspired by the composer's own daughters.