Dark Am I...

A musical fantasy based on "The Song of Solomon"
For Soprano, Counter-Tenor, Tenor, Bass
Flute (Piccolo, Alto flute), Oboe (English horn), French Horn, Percussion, Violin, Viola, Cello, Double bass and Piano.

By Ella Milch Sheriff

Text editors: Keren Hadar & Ella Milch-sheriff

Performers

Keren Hadar, Soprano
David Feldman, Counter-tenor
Nimrod Greenboim, Tenor
Aviel Lignel, Bass

Margalit Gafni, Flute (Piccolo, Alto flute)
Muki Zohar, Oboe (English Horn)
Alon Reuven, French Horn
Daniel bard, Violin
Avshalom Sarid, Viola
Joni Gotlibovitch, Violoncello
Orit Zelniker, Doublebass
Giori Politi, Percussion
Yoni Farchi, Piano

Tamir Chasson, Conductor

About

The work "Dark am I…" is a love song and a song to love.

It was Keren Hadar who approached me with the idea of composing a work based on "The Song of Songs". She edited the text from the original book in such a way so that the woman and her feelings are the core of the story. I immediately loved the idea of composing a work to this beautiful biblical text, especially when the story, as Keren edited it, is a love story, jealousy and the heart-broken woman at the end.

Keren wished the story to be told in a contemporary universal language and she asked me to compose the work in English and Hebrew. The English translation which I used is a combination of 15 different translations and my own one. While working and reading this wondrous text I heard other languages as well. All those languages, connected in my mind with love, came to me and asked their place in this creation: Italian, Portuguese, French…

I felt as if this biblical masterpiece belongs to all nations as there is nothing more common to all of them but love.

Keren Hadar and Ella Milch-Sheriff during rehearsals

While asking me questions like how am I going to move from one language to the other or why use different languages at all, a wise friend of mine reminded me of the tower of Babel. I understood at once what the source of everything is. It comes from the place of "no language". From the place where a mixture of unidentified languages sound is heard and from that point one goes into the word which has significance. The idea enchanted my soul and so I created a work which has Recitatives, Madrigals, Arias and Sinfonias. A work that I wished to be as much universal as possible but, on the other hand, connected to the places where it was conceived, as much as possible. As my land is a land of two languages, where I composed music to the description of nature, I used Hebrew and Arabic parallel, as the Arabic language sound is inseparable part of my life in my country.

The music I composed is actually everything I bear in me since I was born. The Israeli ness on all its musical colors, the oriental music, Yemenite and Arabic music I heard so much as part of the life in Israel. The European music, popular and artistic of all nations and my own one. I think you can find all of these in this work that the love motif unites it.

This is not a work which intends to invent something new in style, form or effects. This is a work that unites in it the variety of emotions that expresses love on all its variations as I personally understand them and feel them. The work is full of rhythms, part of them oriental rhythms, partly western. Part of them even belongs to the world of rock. All of these were done spontaneously and unconsciously and sometimes even without having the formal knowledge. When I look at the total composition I truly recognize all the musical adventures which I experienced throughout my life.

This work was composed especially for the voice and personality of the soprano Keren Hadar whose unique qualities distinct her from other singers I know. I tried to encircle all her vocal, musical and dramatic abilities, as I know them and the result is a combination of an operatic style of singing on one hand and an almost rocky style on the other hand. And that is Keren Hadar who is always between the worlds and both she is doing admirably.

The work has three clear parts:

Part I (ca. 18') is the exposition of the girl in love and the description of the land and its nature. In this part one can hear the sounds of our east.

Part II (ca. 22') makes a transition into the girl's description of her lover and the love between them. Here come the various languages, Italian, Portuguese, French and Hebrew.

Part III (ca. 20') is the dramatic part. Here her heart is broken when her lover disappears and she is looking after him in the streets of Jerusalem, the guards find her and beat her and she returns to herself heartbroken. In the last part, in spite of the great pain she feels after loosing her lover, she let him go, she sends him away. She understands she cannot keep him as he is different than her.

What happened to her at the end? Did she understand that love has many faces and can renew itself, and that she, as a young and beautiful woman can still love many times and she looks at herself with a smile? Or did the pain cause her to go out of her mind?

I cannot answer this question. The music will answer each one of you what happen to the "Shulamit" from the "Song of Songs", a woman so noble, sensitive, vulnerable and knows hoe to love. A woman who knows how to give up.

That is how Keren and I understood the personality of "Shulamit" and we bow to her with admiration.

I dedicate the work to Noam, my own love.

Ella Milch-Sheriff

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Video And Audio Clips

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Press

Came With Love

"...Ella Milch-Sheriff and Keren Hadar took the well known biblical story and blended it into an exotic and ethnic mix that walks in the markets in tastes and odors, with phrases from the Middle East combined with Kurt Weill and music from the Renaissance. And it all combines together: the Song of Songs is built into a story and the music intensifies the divine text about one, bigger than life, love story.

Sheriff's use of different kind of drums combined with the English horn, double bass, viola, cello and piano which sounds here like a middle-eastern instrument, and the great esthetics of the writing and melodies – create a tremendous feat.

...Ella Sheriff has a breakthrough these years with a creative flood full of inner truth and she succeeds to make an immediate contact with her listeners.

Keren Hadar received in this work a chance to show all her abilities as an opera singer, but also as a master in rock and cabaret styles – and all in good taste and talent of two women who brought their united talent to a peak. This is a peak of the Israel Festival and of these two incredible creators..

I must also praise the wonderful musicians, the three male singers and the dedicated conducting of Tamir Chasson. This is a work about love that was written with love, and will certainly last for many years to come. And the audience? Raving with enthusiasm."

Ora Binur, Ma'ariv, 5 June 2007

A wonderful musical composition

"Dark Am I... is a wonderful musical composition. The music of Ella Milch-sheriff is comprehensive and conquering and the performance by Keren Hadar, with the three excellent young singers and a chamber group of musicians conducted by Tamir Chasson gave us a mesmerizing experience and a wonderful evening to remember.

Keren Hadar - Dark Am I

As the author of Song of Songs wrote about Keren Hadar 'Dark am I but lovely, who is this coming up from the desert, for your voice is so sweet and your face is so lovely'. Indeed this was an evening of sweet voices, of lovely music and of outstanding pleasure"

Danny Bloch, Israeli Radio, 5 June 2007

A love Song to the Bible

"...Ella Milch-Sheriff composed in various styles exciting music to the special editing of "Song of Songs", and soprano Keren Hadar, with her ultimate stage presence, presented it in a way that brought the audience to a standing ovation even during the performance.

The orchestration by the composer was excellent, as from the duet between the soprano and the French horn, until the tempest at the end, where the music describes the state of mind of the woman whose lover has gone away for good.

To sum it up – the various styles the composer successfully merged together into a fascinating composition won the audience's heart who rewarded it with a standing ovation."

Hagay Hitron, Ha'aretz, 5 June 2007

A Love song for the Bible Hagai Hitron, Haaretz 5.6.2007 (Hebrew)		Simply Ella Ora Binur, Maariv 5.6.2007 (Hebrew) Read article on the NRG Site »
About Love, Jealousy and Heartbreak Hagai Hitron, Haaretz 4.6.2007 (Hebrew) Read article on the Haaretz Site »		The song of songs as a multi-lingual work Yossi Shifman, Habama 4.6.2007 (Hebrew) Read article on the Habama Site »
Women's song of songs Tal Heinrich, Nana 3.6.2007 (Hebrew) Read article on the Nana Site »		You are beautiful, my husband Margalit Molner-Goitein, Emza Netanya 1.6.2007 (Hebrew) part 1 part 2
The sheriff is back in town Ora Binor, Maariv 28.5.2007 (Hebrew)		A simple love song Merav Yudilevitz, Ynet 26.5.2007 (Hebrew) Read article on the Ynet Site »

Performances

World Premiere: The Israel Festival, Jerusalem
Monday, June 4th 2007, Henri Crown Hall, The Jerusalem Theatre.

10.11.07 - Tel Aviv Museum, 20:30.
15.11.07 - Kriger Hall, Haifa, 20:30.
22.11.07 - Heichal Hatarbut Kfar Saba, 20:30.
6.6.08 - Sibiu Festival.
8.6.08 - Bucharest, National theatre.
28.6.08 - Eglise du sacre-coeur, Libramont, Luxemburg Province, Belgium at 20:30
29.6.08 Gothic Hall – Municipality of Brussels, Grand Place at 20:00.