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The Snow Queen
Classical/Contemporary • 2017 • Lyricist: Hans Christian Andersen, Ji Heng Lee
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Instrumentation |
Soprano, Contralto |
Type of score |
Vocal score |
Publisher |
Ji Heng Lee |
Language |
English |
Difficulty |
Advanced |
Duration |
4'30 |
The text I have set for this piece is adapted from the second story (‘A Little Boy and a Little Girl’) of the eponymous fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. In this scene of the story, the male protagonist Kay was watching the snow from his window when the Snow Queen appeared beautifully in front of him for the first time. My piece, then, musically imagines the charm and allure of that moment.
The relevant section of the original text by Andersen is as follows:
‘In the evening, when little Kay was at home, and half undressed, he climbed up on the chair by the window, and peeped out of the little hole. A few snow-flakes were falling, and one, the largest of all, remained lying on the edge of a flower-pot.
The flake of snow grew larger and larger; and at last it was like a young lady, dressed in the finest white gauze, made of a million little flakes like stars. She was so beautiful and delicate, but she was of ice, of dazzling, sparkling ice; yet she lived; her eyes gazed fixedly, like two stars; but there was neither quiet nor repose in them. She nodded towards the window, and beckoned with her hand. The little boy was frightened, and jumped down from the chair; it seemed to him as if, at the same moment, a large bird flew past the window.’
This is my abridged adaptation:
Snowflakes were falling
And one, the largest of all, grew larger and larger
At last it was like a young lady
dressed in a million little flakes of dazzling, sparkling ice
Her eyes gazed fixedly, like two stars
She was so delicate and beautiful
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