White Stones

SATB divisi, soprano and baritone soli | Duration c. 6'30"

White Stones sets a text written by my mother, the poet Esther Margaret Ayers. This choral nocturne tells the story of a mother who wakes up to the sound of her young son screaming. As she attempts to comfort him, the boy sits up, stares into the darkness and whispers: Giants are coming here, mama. Giants are coming here. Ultimately it is a white lie that calms the boy and banishes his fears, as she assures him that “nothing can hurt you while mama is here.” Armed with these white stones, he destroys his fear of the giants – this of course being a biblical allusion to the story of David and Goliath. It isn’t until the boy’s mother returns to the stillness of her own bed that she recognizes the beating of her own heart as the source of the giants’ heavy tread.

White Stones is featured on Songs of the Questioner, the first full-length CD from GRAMMY-nominated conductor James Jordan and his Philadelphia-based professional choir The Same Stream. The CD features music by Thomas LaVoy, Paul Mealor, Dan Forrest and Peter Relph, and is available from iTunes, Spotify and Amazon, as well as directly from the choir at www.TheSameStreamChoir.com.