connection – Reena Esmail

The Love of Thousands (SATB version)

Program Notes This is one of those stories that has the aura of a myth, but sometimes these little miracles happen to each of us. One afternoon in the summer of 2018, I was at the Corona Institute for Women, a women’s jail just outside of Los Angeles doing a concert of some of my … Read more

Man tu shudam, tu man shudi

Program Notes Thirteenth century Sufi musician and poet Amir Khusro wrote the beautiful verse which inspired this piece. I set the piece with the energy of first love — the first time we encounter a person to whom we feel completely inseparable. But the opposite circumstance is important too: as humans we are so related … Read more

We Are Love

Program Notes original text by Melissa Studdard (all info coming soon) Recording (see video above) Text View/download the full text of We Are Love here: Special Performance Requirements We Are Love is a work designed for two types of choirs to perform together: a regular SATB chorus and a community chorus. While the community part … Read more

Listen

Program Notes When I worked with Urban Voices Project, a choir on Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles, I met a man named Brian Palmer. He used to say, “One act of love, I know for sure, is to listen.” We lost Brian a few years later, suddenly and unexpectedly. And as I struggled to … Read more

The Love of Thousands (extended 12-part treble version)

*please note: while this is the original version of the work, it is also the least performed one, because it is quite fiddly! If you want the more streamlined version, it’s here. Program Notes This is one of those stories that has the aura of a myth, but sometimes these little miracles happen to each … Read more