All-State Choir Audition Material: The Music of Stillness

for SATB (with divisions) and piano
The Music of Stillness is a beautiful and emotive setting of Sara Teasdale’s poem ‘There Will Be Rest’. Sonorously scored choral phrases conjure up images of ‘stars shining, rooftops covered with snow, crystal peace…finding the music of stillness’. Following a serene opening, the piece rises and falls through both affecting climaxes and passages of great tranquility, ending with the same sense of stillness with which it begins.