solitary — David Lang

program note

solitary is a setting of my rewriting of a portion of the Book of Lamentations. I have always been a big fan of the Book of Lamentations – it seems to see deep inside the weaknesses of people, into the darkest places in our souls, and it is very clear about the punishments we deserve for not being better people. Some biblical texts are much softer encouragements for us to try to do better, but Lamentations is hardcore. I wanted to look closely at just how much more hardcore it is, so I made my lyrics by compiling a list of all the horrible things that will happen to us if we don’t change ourselves, in the order that these horrible things are mentioned in the original text.

solitary was commissioned by Cappella Amsterdam and Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, supported by the AMMODO Foundation.

solitary should last about 8 minutes.

— David Lang

Libretto

solitary

words by david lang

(after the lamentations of jeremiah)

solitary

bereaved

enslaved

bitter

weeping

comfortless

betrayed

exiled

oppressed

endlessly enslaved

restless

overtaken

mourning

deserted

crying out

grief stricken

brought low

suffering

alone

captive

without relief of any kind

like deer

pasture-less

running on

exhausted

in flight from the hunter

I remember

the life that was mine

now

there is no one left to help me

grievous

unclean

despised

naked

moaning

ashamed

filthy

endlessly downfallen

with no one to console me

the life that was mine

is now someone else’s

crying out

starving

despised

seared by fire

deep into my bones

entangled

turned back

desolated

endlessly in misery

chained

weighed down

weakened

powerless

rejected

crushed

like grapes in a winepress

my crying eyes

streaming with tears

comfortless

courageless

shocked

beaten

unconsoled

surrounded

an unclean, filthy thing

abandoned by my lovers

distressed

churning

restless

bereaved

inside me, it is like death

comfortless

troubled

wicked

crying out

sick at heart

enveloped in darkness

cast down

forgotten

pitiless

swallowed up

broken

brought down to the ground,

cut off

powerless

without protection

caught in a flaming fire

devoured

the aim of every arrow

swallowed up

destroyed

mourning

moaning

wrecked

destroyed

forgotten

ruined

dejected

sunk into the ground

destroyed and broken

lawless

blind

eyes all cried out

everything churning

empty of emotion

wounded

fainting away in the streets of the city

starving

fainting away in the streets of the city

gasping my last breath

comfortless

downfall as vast as the sea

unhealed and unhealable

futile

guilty

mocked

hissed

jeered

destroyed without pity

gloated over

my tears stream down

in rivers

day and night!

no rest for me

no rest for my eyes

crying out

my heart poured out

like water

fainting from hunger

tormented

starving

slaughtered

lying on the ground

in the middle of the streets

fallen by the sword

killed in anger

slaughtered without pity

my terrors

from every direction

inescapable

destroyed

afflicted

beaten

walking in darkness and not in light

alone

again and again, all day

skin rubbed raw

flesh worn away

bones broken

besieged and surrounded

bitter and hard

living in darkness

like the dead

walled in

no escape

weighed down with chains

when I cry out

when I plead for help

no one can hear

my way is blocked

there’s no way forward

hunted

broken

torn to pieces

stunned

every archer aims at me

every arrow finds me

pierced

mocked

taunted, all day long

filled with bitterness

drunken on bitterness

teeth broken

pressed down into the ashes

so far from peace

I have forgotten what it is

my strength is gone

my only hope is you

solitary (2016) 8'

text by David Lang (after the Book of Lamentations)

program note

Libretto

score preview

first performance: