An accomplished composer, conductor and lecturer, Eric Whitacre has quickly become one of the most popular and performed composers of his generation. The Los Angeles Times has praised his compositions as "works of unearthly beauty and imagination, (with) electric, chilling harmonies"; while the BBC raves that "what hits you straight between the eyes is the honesty, optimism and sheer belief that passes any pretension. This is music that can actually make you smile.”
Though he had received no formal training before the age of 18, his first experiences singing in college choir changed his life, and he completed his first concert work, Go, Lovely, Rose, at the age of 21. Eric went on to the Juilliard School, earning his Master of Music degree and studying with Pulitzer Prize- and Oscar-winning composer John Corigliano.
Many of Whitacre's works have entered the standard choral and symphonic repertories and have become the subject of several recent scholarly works and doctoral dissertations. His works Water Night, Cloudburst, Sleep, Lux Aurumque and A Boy and a Girl are among the most popular choral works of the last decade, and his Ghost Train, Godzilla Eats Las Vegas, and October have achieved equal success in the symphonic wind community. To date, Whitacre's published works have received thousands of performances and have sold well over 750,000 copies worldwide. He has received composition awards from the Barlow International Composition Competition, the American Choral Directors Association and the American Composers Forum. In 2001, Whitacre became the youngest recipient ever awarded the coveted Raymond C. Brock commission by the American Choral Directors Association.
As a conductor, Whitacre has appeared with hundreds of professional and educational ensembles throughout the world. In the last ten years he has conducted concerts of his choral and symphonic music in Japan, Australia, China, Singapore, South America and much of Europe, as well as dozens of American universities and colleges where he regularly conducts seminars and lectures with young musicians. Over the past few years, these loyal fans and supporters have moved online, spreading Eric’s popularity to an ever-expanding worldwide audience. Upcoming commissions include works for The King’s Singers with the National Youth Choir of Great Britain, the London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, and an oratorio - featuring full orchestra, choir, and soloists – celebrating the opening of the new Long Center for the Performing Arts in Austin, TX.
His music has been featured on dozens of commercial and independent recordings. His first recording, The Music of Eric Whitacre, was hailed by The American Record Guide as one of the top ten classical albums of 1997. In 2006, a full collection of his a cappella music, Cloudburst and Other Choral Works, was released on the renowned British classical label Hyperion Records. The album quickly became an international best seller, appearing in the top ten of both Billboard’s and iTune’s Top Classical Albums charts. Two years after its debut, the critically acclaimed release continues to be a top-seller. The collection earned a 2007 Grammy nomination for Best Choral Performance.
Most recently, Whitacre has received acclaim for Paradise Lost: Shadows and Wings, a cutting edge musical combining trance, ambient and techno electronica with choral, cinematic, and operatic traditions. Winner of the ASCAP Harold Arlen award, this musical also gained Whitacre the prestigious Richard Rodgers Award for most promising musical theater composer. Following its sold-out run, the most recent production earned 10 nominations at the 2007 Los Angeles Stage Alliance Ovation Awards, including one for Best World Premiere Musical.
Mr. Whitacre lives in Los Angeles with his wife, celebrated soprano Hila Plitmann, and their son.
Sleep
Eric Whitacre Lyrics
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A silver thread on darkened dune
With closing eyes and resting head
I know that sleep is coming soon
Upon my pillow, safe in bed
A thousand pictures fill my head
I cannot sleep my minds a flight
If there are noises in the night
A frighting shadow, flickering light
Then I surrender unto sleep
Where clouds of dreams give second sight
What dreams may come both dark and deep
Of flying wings and soaring leap
As I surrender unto sleep
As I surrender unto sleep
The song "Sleep" by Eric Whitacre is an introspective and meditative piece, evoking the feelings of anticipation, restfulness, and surrender to slumber. The opening lines, "The evening hangs beneath the moon/ A silver thread on darkened dune," paint a picture of a serene nighttime landscape. The word "beneath" suggests a sense of weightlessness and suspension, capturing the feeling of being caught between wakefulness and sleep.
The second stanza describes the singer's struggle to fall asleep, with "a thousand pictures" filling their head. The disconnection between the mind and the body is illustrated with the simile "my limbs seem made of lead." The third stanza hints at possible disturbances during the night, with "noises" and "a frightening shadow," but the singer finds solace in the knowledge that they will eventually succumb to sleep. The final lines suggest the possibility of vivid dreams, perhaps hinting at the idea that sleep can offer a new perspective on life.
Overall, the song "Sleep" captures the duality of sleep as both a natural and necessary biological function and as a mystical and unpredictable realm of experience.
Line by Line Meaning
The evening hangs beneath the moon
The sun has set, and the night has arrived, as a dark evening envelops under the shining moon.
A silver thread on darkened dune
The bright light of the moon produced a shiny path on the sandy dunes, which otherwise would have been dark and lifeless.
With closing eyes and resting head
As I am about to sleep, my eyes automatically shut, and my head lies comfortably on the pillow, devoid of any stress or tension.
I know that sleep is coming soon
No matter how worked up I might feel, I am aware that sleep is a terrific pacifier and that it would soon take over me.
Upon my pillow, safe in bed
My head rests against the soft pillow, marking the beginning of a comfortable night in bed.
A thousand pictures fill my head
My mind is swarmed with countless images and thoughts that keep popping in and out of focus, with me unable to make sense of them.
I cannot sleep my minds a flight
I can't seem to calm down and restrict my thoughts to one single thing, which keeps fogging up and taking off like an airplane from a runway.
And yet my limbs seem made of lead
Although I can't be at ease mentally, my body feels too heavy and weak, almost as if my muscles have turned to lead.
If there are noises in the night
If there are sounds or disturbances in the silence of the nighttime, that might make me feel even more anxious and unable to sleep.
A frightening shadow, flickering light
If there's a creepy figure, or an eerie flickering of light, that might make me feel even more scared or panicked.
Then I surrender unto sleep
But I am aware that I won't be able to make myself relax, so all I can do is submit to slumber and succumb to the unease that surrounds me.
Where clouds of dreams give second sight
As I doze off into the realm of sleep, I am transported into a new world of imaginary clouds and dreams, giving me an entirely new way of looking at things.
What dreams may come both dark and deep
What kind of dreams will fill me in the depths of sleep, dark or lighthearted ones, that I can't predict or shape; it's a surprise waiting for me to unravel.
Of flying wings and soaring leap
It's possibly anything, of flying like an angel in the sky, or leaping like a maverick on the ground, something entirely different from mundane life.
As I surrender unto sleep
No matter what's in store for me in my slumber, I don't have control over it, I can only let go and submerge myself willingly into the state of sleep.
As I surrender unto sleep
The thought of surrendering to sleep is taken up once again, emphasizing how the only way out now is to let go and immerse into a peaceful state of slumber.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ELVIS COSTELLO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind