Format : Vocal Score
These choruses are from the composer's three-act opera Tess which is based on Thomas Hardy's novel Tess of the d'Urbervilles. All three are from Act II which begins on a dairy farm on a May morning in late 19thcentury England.I. Winter is WhiteAngel Clare a budding gentleman farmer sings this song with his Harp for a gathering at the dairy. (the text is adapted from the Hardy poem 'The Seasons of HerYear.')II. AriseAct II iopens with dairymaids and men singing this chorus as they prepare for the day's work. (The text for the outer sections is based on a folksong quoted in the novel; the mkiddlesectiopn employs the Hardy poem 'Gallant's Song.')III. Come Let Us Chime (Wedding Song)Tess a country girl who came to the dairy to escape her dark past accapts Clare's proposal of marriage. Theyembrace the curtain falls and the wedding chorus is heard offstage. During the last few bars the curtain rises on the next scene - Tess and Clare in theur honeymoon cottage. (The text is by the composer.)
