The Desire for Hermitage
Song record peer reviewed by Editorial Board member: Gregory Zavracky| Song Title | The Desire for Hermitage (Search) |
| Composer(s): | Samuel Barber |
| Composer Underrepresented Group | LGBTQ+ (Search) |
| Author(s): | Sean O'Faolain (after Anonymous) |
| Keyword(s) & Features: | Acceptance; Alone; Anticipation; Beloved; Birth; Bread; Cells; Circle of Life; Clouds; Cold; Comfort; Contentment; Death; Desire; Ending; Evil; Feeding; Fulfillment; Great; Happiness; Heaven; Hermitages; Hours; Houses; Leaving; Life; Little; Metaphor: Death as Comfort; Natural; Nature; Near; Old Age; Part of a Song Cycle; Passage of Time; Patience; Pilgrimages; Singing; Solitude; Springs; Tombs; Water |
| First Line | Ah! To be all alone in a little cell with nobody near me (Search) |
| Average Duration | 3:30 (Search) |
| Year of composition | 1953 (Search) |
| Link to English Text Online | http://www.listeningarts.com/music/art_song/sounds_and_texts/BarberTexts.htm |
| Larger Work | Hermit Songs (Search) |
| Musical Form | Ternary (Search) |
| Original Language | English (Search) |
| Score Source | https://www.halleonard.com/product/viewproduct.action?itemid=50490045 |
| Audio Source | https://open.spotify.com/track/3vBlzQtAJVtcjzpqj80j0Z |
| Difficulty Level | College (Search) |
| Catalog Designation | Op. 29 no. 10 (Search) |
| Range: | D4 - G5 (Search) |
| Original Key | C minor (Search) |
| Premiered By | Leontyne Price; Samuel Barber (Search) |
| Commissioned By | Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge Foundation (Search) |
| Notes | Also available in low key (Bb minor) (Search) |
| Recommended Printed Source | G. Schirmer, "Samuel Barber: 65 Songs" (Search) |
| Sources Cited | Heyman, B. (2012). Samuel Barber : A thematic catalogue of the complete works. New York: Oxford University Press. (Search) |