The Rain Is Over And Gone
SATB choral/piano score
PEL2009-Choir and Piano
Instrumental parts
PEL2009-IP
A WORK FOR SATB CHOIR AND PIANO WITH OPTIONAL BASS/GUITAR AND ORGAN
PEL2009 'The Rain Is Over And Gone' - With texts based on the “Song of Songs”, this work joyfully affirms “life, love, and laughter”. The soprano solo Is featured on the verses with the SATB choir forming a smoothly blended background at the refrain.
This song was created as part of the larger musical/narrative work entitled "City Without Walls", which was commissioned by The City Mission Society of Boston and featured singer Kecia Lewis-Evans as soloist and narrator at the premiere of the work in November 1991. This song is placed halfway into the larger narrative, and is the first point in the work where the narrator sings. It comes at a point when the main female character is portrayed sitting by the open window of her Roxbury (Boston) apartment, rocking her new baby to the sound of raindrops outside. The sound of the rain reminds her of the dark night, not long ago, when the police came to tell her that her teenage son had been killed in gang violence on the city streets. As she rocks her baby and remembers, she is filled with new hope for the future and, paraphrasing the Song of Songs, sings, "the rain is over and gone'.
Video
Texts
The Rain Is Over And Gone
Words: Song of Solomon with additional words by Paul Halley
Music: Paul Halley
The rain is over and gone,
And the winter is passing by,
The time for singing has come,
And the clouds have parted from the sky.
Arise, my love, and come away,
For lo! the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone,
Over and gone, my love,
Come away, my fair one, come away.
We will rise and go to the city,
The city without any walls,
Where we can live in freedom,
To the new Jerusalem we’re called.
Arise, my love, my fair one,
For lo! the winter is gone,
The flowers appear on the earth again,
And the time for singing has come.
Sing of life and love and laughter,
Sing of freedom to live in peace,
And there shall be no more crying,
Only joy that will never cease.
Reviews
“Conductors looking for an exciting closing number that showcases an exceptional soloist may find this work appealing. This gospel-style work builds from an unaccompanied solo to a full, passionate conclusion.” –The Choral Journal
