To Be the Sun

What does it mean to be on our human journey? Joby Talbot’s Piedra de Sol (Sunstone), a setting of Octavio Paz’ epic poem in the original Spanish, asks that question as it explores themes of love, identity, and cycles of time. Talbot sets the poem for 20 voices and marimba, showcasing Conspirare’s GRAMMY®-winning singers’ virtuosity.  The commission is fully underwritten by the Joel Brauer Fund for New Music.

British Composer Joby Talbot has composed music for the films Sing, Sing 2, and Wonka! Choral music fans may know him for his Path of Miracles. His opera Everest has been widely-acclaimed.

Thank you to the Joel Brauer Fund for New Music.

Composer Note

“Piedra de sol invites listeners and performers alike on a journey of infinite dimensions – a voyage whose course bends, advances, recedes, comes full circle and arrives forever.”  – Joby Talbot

Read Joby Talbot’s complete composer note.

Recommended Listening:

Composing Myself Podcast

Artistic Personnel

Craig Hella Johnson, conductor

SOPRANO

Emily Yocum Black – Paducah, KY

Chelsea Helm – Washington, DC

Gitanjali Mathur – Austin, TX

Savannah Porter – London, England

Kathlene Ritch – Santa Fe, NM

Tiana Sorenson – Chicago, IL

ALTO

Sarah Brauer – Eugene, OR

Lauren McAllister – Cincinnati, OH

Laura Mercado-Wright – Austin, TX

Zerrin Agabigum Martin – Tampa, FL

TENOR

Haitham Haidar – Montreal, QC

David Kurtenbach Rivera – San Francisco, CA

Wilson Nichols – New York, NY

Dann Coakwell – Ithaca, NY

BASS

Robert Harlan – Austin, TX

Michael Hawes – Pflugerville, TX

Enrico Lagasca – New York, NY

Tim O’Brien – Austin, TX

Jonathan Woody – New York, NY

Paul Max Tipton – New York City, NY

Glenn Miller – Birmingham, MI

INSTRUMENTALISTS:

Tom Burritt, Percussion  – Leander, TX

Joseph Choi, Rehearsal Pianist – Austin, TX