For Poulenc

I wrote this piece for Julius Baker and sent a draft of it to him shortly before he died on August 8, 2003. It is based on a song that I set to a Frank O'Hara poem that he wrote in memory of Francis Poulenc.

The music is available from Subito.

August 2003

Here's the poem:

My first day in Paris I walked
from Saint Germain to the Point Mirabeau
in soft amber light and leaves
and love was running out

city of light and hearts
city of dusk and dismay
the Seine believed it to be true
that I was unloved and alone

how lonely is that bridge
without your song
the Avenue Mozart, the rue Pergolèse
the tobaccos and the nuns

all Paris is alone for this
brief leafless moment
and snow falls down upon
the streets of our peculiar hearts


You can hear a performance recorded in 2017 by flutist Rebecca Johnson and pianist Cara Chowning here.