Exodus
| YEAR: | 2021 |
| DURATION: | 5 minutes |
| CATEGORY: | Choral |
| INSTRUMENTATION: | SATB |
| PREMIERE: | December 12, 2021 Donald Nally // Conductor |
| TEXT: | Alex Berko |
| COMMISSION: | The Crossing |
Program Note:
Growing up Jewish, I did not feel a personal connection with the word “carol”. I did, however, have a connection with the word “plague”. The Old Testament is riddled with them, and I couldn’t help but draw a line between the plagues in the bible and the current plagues we face in our society. I found myself returning to the Mi Chamocha (Exodus 15:1-18): a prayer that was sung at the end of the Passover story directly after the Jews escaped Egypt. It is a love poem to God and it begins with a rhetorical question: “Who is like you, O God...” To me, I did not see this as a rhetorical question but one of deep complication with my faith. This small phrase became the fertile ground for me to ask further questions. I wanted to take the grandiosity of that phrase and distill it into a child-like curiosity intertwined with uncertainty.
who is like you
will you protect me
should i thank you
will you stay silent
nevertheless, i pray
- Alex Berko
Exodus was written for The Crossing as part of their “Carols After the Plague” series. For this project, I was asked to compose a personal “carol” in response to a “plague”.