THE LAKE
A Monologue for Tenor and Piano
text and music by Margaret Brouwer
Composed: 2019
Duration: 11 minutes
Premiere: October 13, 2019, Cleveland Composers Guild, Drinko Recital Hall, Cleveland State University,
Brian Skoog (tenor) and John Simmons (piano)
Instrumentation: tenor and piano
PROGRAM NOTES
A person is taking a morning walk on the beach. He sings of the beauty of the lake and his peace and happiness to be there. He notices something floating on the lake further down the beach and, intrigued, he walks toward it. As he gets close, he sees that it is a large area of the lake covered with odorous algae. His happy mood changes to shock and disbelief, and then to sadness.
The Lake
text by Margaret Brouwer
This morning is beautiful
The sun is rising over the lake.
I walk along the shore,
The sun glints on the water,
glints and sparkles on the spray.
The birds are singing.
Those little black birds dip down, dip down, swoop up,
then they dive into the water to catch a fish.
This morning is beautiful.
The air is fresh and crisp.
I am happy that I am here by the lake.
I did not know it was so beautiful here.
I am restful here.
What’s that?
What’s that on the water up ahead?
Something green and shiny - floating in the water.
Huh. It’s quite large.
I am getting closer and soon can see it clearly.
No—
I won’t look at that!
I won’t see it…
It’s nothing important.
I will look the other way, and walk past quickly.
But – but –it is quite expansive.
I will hurry along.
Don’t look!
Look the other way.
That smell. What is that unpleasant odor?
Oh. It’s just a dead fish on the beach.
And another, and another dead fish on the beach,
And dead fish floating in the water here.
Green!
The lake is green here.
A disturbing phosphorescent green here!
Glowing green swirls in the water.
Ah! What can be done!
I loathe seeing this algae on the lake!
Who should help the lake?
It is complicated.
The farm run-off, the sewers, dumping in the lake.
The expense of changes.
Bad habits to change.
Gone the sparkling spray here.
Gone the little black birds.
All gone, all gone in this part of the lake.
The fishermen, the swimming children,
the safe drinking water – here all gone.
All pushed away by shallow needs and wants and greed.
All pushed away by negligence. Sparkling waves are gone here.
The clear blue lake is filled with sludge here.
Why are we so careless?
I must walk back to the good beach.
I cannot stand it here.
Hurry - go back now.
Walk to the beach that is still pristine, still unspoiled.
Go back.
REVIEWS
“With a text by the composer in which her character realizes that a beautiful color on the water is actually pollution, Brouwer colorfully paints the steps from rapture through shock to a final lament. Tenor Brian Skoog sang the beautiful lines and melismas with lovely clarity while pianist John Simmons colorfully handled the rich backdrop.” - David Kulma, ClevelandClassical, 2019
“Another of our fundamental problems – the environment – depicted in music. Margaret Brouwer is certainly engaged in the global situation. The music in this song – or perhaps scene is a better word – is beautiful, often sung melismatic. But when the opposite side of the coin appears, it becomes heated, dramatic, frightened. Brian Skoog is an excellent singer, sonorous, soft voice but with some metal in it when needed.”
- Göran Forsling, MusicWeb International, Reactions CD, 2022
“‘The Lake’ describes a man walking near water before finding piles of dead fish and signs of pollution, ruining his tranquil experience. Skoog’s powerful tenor and Wang’s piano melodies work hand in hand with the text to create an effective tone poem. The piece closes with the haunting words “All gone…go back,” a poignant ending in the face of tragedy.”
- Nicolette Cheauré, ClevelandClassical, Reactions CD, 2022
“‘The Lake’ (2019), set to Brouwer’s own text, is both a poetic show of gratitude and a plea to wake up to climate change, shaped with subtle urgency by tenor Brian Skoog and pianist Wang.”
- Gramophone, Reactions CD, 2022
“The composer wrote the text for ‘The Lake’, an attractive piece that carries with it a message about man’s despoiling of nature. The piano’s opening arpeggios mimic birdsong; vocal soloist Brian Skoog (a tenor with a warm sound and a wide range) engages in an agile back-and-forth with pianist Wang. The performance is accomplished, and the diction is clear, without the airbrushed perfection sometimes cultivated in lieder singing. As the music progresses, the ecological message is clear: sewers dumping in the lake, dead fish, sludge. “Why are we so careless?””
- Melinda Bargreen, EarRelevant, Reactions CD, 2022