Head, Heart

Led by Paul Hillier, Chamber Choir Ireland performs songs about love, humanity, and free will, this February at the Pepper Canister Church.

Sibelius' Six Songs create several vignettes on life and love: a fair voice silenced by sadness; a man striking out on his own as he heads to sea; and a groom building a blazing fire to tar his sled, ready to carry his new bride.

David Lang's love fail is a meditation on the timelessness of love, weaving the story of Tristan and Isolde—"the greatest love story ever"—together with more modern sources.

Gavin Bryars' Glorious Hill, originally composed for the Tennessee Wiliams play Summer and Smoke, takes its text from the Renaissance philosopher Pico della Mirandola's Oration on the Dignity of Man.