Love’s Lives Lost (2023)

I. Introduction
II. Meetings
III. Parody of Chamisso
IV. In-lookers
V. Onlookers
VI. Chanson Triste
VII. Kalamazoo!
VIII. Finale: Split Mirror

My new song cycle, Love's Lives Lost, takes inspiration from Schumann's renowned composition Frauen-Liebe und Leben (A Woman's Love and Life). To capture the cyclical essence present in Schumann's songs, I collaborated with my close friend, the gifted pianist and poet Evan Shinners, who crafted a collection of eight poems.

Love's Lives Lost tells the tale of an unexpected reunion between two former lovers. While an unspoken chemistry lingers between them, they each hold contrasting interpretations of their shared past, adding depth and complexity to their journey. Similar to Schumann's original work, the piano plays a vital role, serving as a tender introduction and evolving into a central character, seamlessly connecting the songs in Love's Lives Lost.

Adding a touch of humor to the poignant nostalgia, the penultimate song titled "Kalamazoo" humorously reenacts the rendezvous of the two lovers in the eponymous city.

Dedicated to soprano Susanna Phillips, the cycle serves as both a tribute to her artistry and a wistful homage to the fleeting connections we encounter throughout our lives.

Commissioned by ChamberFest West, the cycle will received its world premiere with Phillips and myself on piano on 7/23 in Calgary.

- Michael Stephen Brown, 2023

Review

"Susanna Phillips was splendid in the songs composed for her, her diction clear, and her voice beguiling at all times. Entitled Love’s Lives Lost, the songs are inspired by the love relationship of Clara and Robert Schumann, the eight songs a riff on Schumann’s own song cycle Frauenliebe und Leben. The attractive poetry by Evan Shinners is suffused with nostalgia in modern vein but is also witty in places, especially in the rhymed poem on Kalamazoo.

Michael Stephen, Brown, the composer and accompanist, provided sensitive accompaniments, some of them extended instrumental reflections on the texts in the manner of Schumann, if with harmonies that evoked the sound world of Ravel.” -Calgary Herald