For your judicious and pious consideration

for mezzo-soprano voice, viola, and piano
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Length: ca. 9'

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Text
Adapted from the Petition of Mary Eastey (1692)

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Program Note
I composed For your judicious and pious consideration for the 2016 NY Phil Biennial.  I wanted to use a text connected with New England history, and the subject of the Salem Witch Trials struck me as particularly compelling and relevant to contemporary events.  
 
I drew the song’s text from a 1692 petition written by Mary Eastey, a condemned witch.  In her petition, Eastey begs not for her own life, but appeals for the lives of the others accused.  She implores the judges to conduct their investigations with greater discernment and rationality.  I selected excerpts from Eastey’s petition, which I then adapted into modern English.
 
While composing the music, I was in the process of learning and performing several choral works by Bach and Handel.  These textures and forms were very much on my mind throughout the writing process, and I sought to incorporate these elements into a contemporary harmonic landscape.  
 
Premiere
Commissioned by Yale School of Music; premiered at the 2016 NY Phil Biennial.​

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​Recording (excerpt)