"Dream of Me as Water" for SATB choir and piano (2024)

Music by Stuart Beatch - https://stuartbeatch.com/dream-of-me-...
Text by David Ly - https://palimpsestpress.ca/books/drea...

Vox Humana Chamber Choir (Victoria, BC, Canada)
David Stratkauskas, conductor
Kim Farris-Manning, piano
Live performance from May 2025
https://www.voxhumanachoir.ca/

In 2023, I was commissioned by my friend and colleague Deirdre Kellerman to write a new piece for Tone Cluster, a queer choir in Ottawa. With the premiere scheduled for a concert on the theme of water, we were interested in exploring the idea of water as a metaphor for sexuality and gender fluidity.

I was drawn to this poem by the Vancouver-based poet David Ly for its mysterious, sensual imagery. David’s poetry often hints at something monstrous (perhaps a yassified Creature from the Black Lagoon?) but as we plunge into the depths, the language here is undeniably deep, rich, and comforting.

In my piece, I’ve depicted the texture of water through a glistening bell-like motif and billowing arpeggios in the piano. The music gradually moves from rhythmic instability and brightness in the first half, to stability and darkness in the second half. By the end of the piece, we have re-emerged as something new and grounded, transformed into the fullest version of our queer selves.

Learn more at https://stuartbeatch.com/