SNOW DAY

for mixed SATB choir

Written: 2014
Duration: 8'
Instrumentation: mixed SATB choir (a cappella with occasional divisis, SSAATBB; 4 alarm clocks suggested, see score for additional details)
Commissioned by the Pelham Memorial High School Choir, Maria Abeshouse, Director
World Premiere: Pelham Memorial High School Choir, Maria Abeshouse, Director, Pelham, NY, May 20, 2014.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music

View Score | Buy Sheet Music | Buy Audio | Practice MIDI Tracks

PROGRAM NOTE

The ideas in Snow Day were suggested by students in the Pelham Memorial High School Choir in Pelham, NY. The piece outlines a typical, hectic week in the life of teenagers. My lyricist David Cote and I spent time sifting through various comments from the choral members, and we eventually settled on a few key ideas that seemed to work well together and that helped to create a sort of encapsulated, dramatic narrative. Snow Day was commissioned by the Pelham Memorial High School Choir, Maria Abeshouse, Director.

  • Snow Day

    Wake up, wake up, get up: It’s Monday!
    Have to rise at 6:25.
    Okay; now it’s 6:49. Rise!
    There goes the bell. Here we go.
    Pre-Calc H, AP French, US History, AP Lit.
    Je veux aller à la plage.
    Final bell at 3:14!
    Soccer practice, drama club, Model UN.

    It’s 8:48! Fifteen minutes in the hall to cram;
    Told mom and dad I’d ace the exam.
    AP Physics II, Italian III, AP Bio, Psychology.
    Voglio andare al mare.
    Chance of snow… chance of snow… 20 percent.
    Why does Tuesday take so long?

    Now we are halfway through the week.
    Chem Sem, German 1, Latin 3
    Volo ire ad litus.
    Ich will an den Strand gehen.
    Je veux aller à la plage.
    Voglio andare al mare.
    I want to go to the beach—now!
    Chance of snow… chance of snow… 60 percent.

    Wake up, wake up—wait—look: white. Snow.
    It’s snowing. Snowing!
    And the snow is glowing.
    Forget the beach. Go back to sleep.
    No school.
    Only snow, snow, snow…

    Wake up, wake up, get up: It’s Friday! It’s Friday! It’s Friday!
    Test, test, test: A, B, C, D, none of the above, all of the above—E.
    AP Statistics, Drama, Sports and Fitness
    Concert Chorus! Ha hee ho hee, ha hee ho hee ha.
    Final bell at 3:15!
    Made it! It’s over!
    I wish the weekend went forever…
    And maybe Monday, maybe Monday… it will snow!

    © Copyright 2014 David Cote. Used With Permission.

Press Quotes

“Robert Paterson could probably set a telephone book to music and create something that captivates. Luckily, he chooses much better texts... [In Snow Day], Paterson depicts the bright, conflicted chatter of teenagers...”
— Donald Rosenberg, Gramophone