Great Trees

I have long been attracted to Wendell Berry's poetry and have set his words to music a number of times: THE CIRCLES OF OUR LIVES, THE WHEEL, WE CLASP THE HANDS, THE PEACE OF WILD THINGS, and A MUSIC IN THE AIR. There is a strong connection to the earth, to generations, to cycles and seasons, to each other. I'm right now immersed in three poems about great trees: A Timbered Choir, I Go Among Trees, and Sabbaths 1998, for a song cycle project for tenor and orchestra for the University of Central Florida Symphony Orchestra, soloist Jeremy Hunt, and conductor Chung Park.  There's something profound about sitting still among great trees that "uphold weightless grace of song, a blessing on this place".