Shall We Gather

by Lucas Meachem

Overview

With Shall We Gather, baritone Lucas Meachem offers a recital of American songs as his solo debut. Joined by his wife, pianist Irina Meachem, this album is in response to the turmoil of the coronavirus and the associated social distancing and shuttering of communal spaces. The musical familiarity between husband and wife is clear as they traverse the landscape of American songs from the 19th through the 21st centuries. The program contains well-known songs ("Oh, Shenandoah" in an interesting arrangement by Steve White), but many of these works will be less known to many listeners. Gene Scheer is represented here on two works, as the composer of the opening "American Anthem" and as the text author for That Moment On from Jake Heggie's "Songs of 9/11." These are two of the strongest works offered here by Lucas, whose sympathetic voice lends itself especially well to the despair of the Heggie work. Another example of this quality in Meachem's voice is William Grant Still's "Grief," a setting of a LeRoy V. Brant poem by the same name. The recital closes with two of Aaron Copland's arrangements contained in his "Old American Songs," The Boatman's Dance and At the River, the latter of which lends the album its title. Meachem is pitchy at times, generally in the program's quietest moments, but it is not detrimental to the music overall. Proceeds of this album go to the Meachems' Perfect Day Music Foundation, a nonprofit organization with the goal of promoting works of historically neglected composers and poets. ~ Keith Finke

Product Details

Release Date:	09/24/2021
Label:	Rubicon
UPC:	5065002149701
catalogNumber:	1071
Rank:	162663

Tracks

1. American Anthem, for voice & piano  (04:11)

2. Indian Songs (3) for voice & piano, Op. 32: No. 1 Song of the Deathless Voice

   2. No. 1 Song of the Deathless Voice  (02:08)
3. Grief, for voice & piano (or orchestra)  (03:37)

4. Walt Whitman Songs (4) for voice & piano (or orchestra): No. 2 Beat! Beat! Drums!

   4. No. 2 Beat! Beat! Drums!  (03:31)

5. Shadow of the Blues, for voice & piano: No. 2 Litany

   5. No. 2 Litany  (03:37)
6. The Rich Man, song  (01:50)
7. Night  (02:20)

8. Pieces of 9/11: Memories from Houston, for 2 sopranos, baritone, violin, cello & guitar: That Moment On

   8. That Moment On  (06:20)
9. A Perfect Day, for voice & piano (or orchestra)  (02:56)
10. Shenandoah, folk song  (02:55)
11. In the Mornin', song arrangement for voice & piano (after Mary Evelyn Stiles), S. 441 (K. 6B78)  (02:35)
12. We Will Always Walk Together, for voice & piano  (05:54)
13. Hard Times Come Again No More for voice & piano  (04:21)

14. Old American Songs, for voice & piano, Book 1: No. 1 The Boatman's Dance

    14. No. 1 The Boatman's Dance  (03:09)

15. Old American Songs, for voice & piano, Book 2: No. 4 At the River

    15. No. 4 At the River  (03:21)

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Lucas Meachem   Primary Artist