What The Thunder Said For TTBB Chorus, Finger Cymbals, Prayer Stones, and Timpani   (5:50)

Gladde Music Pub. (GMP7501) (New Release!)  $1.95

T.S. Eliot was starkly descriptive in his poem, The Wasteland.  He entitled the fifth stanza of the poem "What The Thunder Said."  The line, "Here is no water but only rock" gives cotton-mouth to the reader!  With these images from the poem, the composer has ventured into highly sound-oriented vocal production, including some sprechstimme and percussive articulation of consonants.  Vocal colors give rise to unusual sounds from the Timpani, the chattering sound of Prayer Stones, and the tingling effect of Finger Cymbals. The music is a challenging, colorful work set in dramatic fashion.  You will need a glass of water to quench the thirst it creates!

T.S. Eliot