Dulce et Decorum est (2020) - Ethan Soledad [Score Video]

For SATB choir a capella with divisi. Premiered and performed live by Choral Arts Initiative as part of the PREMIERE| Project Festival 2022. Brandon Elliott, Artistic Director. Connor Scott, Conductor. Program Notes: One of Wilfred Owen’s most famous works, the text depicts the horrific scene of a WWI soldier experiencing the effects of chlorine gas in excruciating detail. Upon first reading the text, I was struck by Owen’s incredibly graphic imagery and emotional intensity. The horror, trauma, fear, and rage that came with fighting in the war is so powerfully encapsulated and yet, it’s merely a fraction of what the soldiers have experienced. The latin phrase “Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori,” or “How sweet and fitting it is to die for one’s country,” is used ironically in the poem to condemn the war and those who would glorify it. “Dulce et decorum est“ by Wilfred Owen (1893 - 1918) Bent double, like old beggars under sacks, Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed