Que doncella se casa con el viento? (from Historietas del Viento)

Conductor Notes:

SSSAAA a cappella. A subtle, sweet-toned miniature in which a teacher asks a child “What maiden will marry the wind?”. The responses are cryptic and classic Lorca. We enjoyed trying to differentiate between the adult and childlike voices. I highly recommend the whole suite (under “Historietas” on this site).

Poem by Federico Garcia Lorca
(sung in Spanish)

Translation:

School

The Teacher
What maiden will marry the wind?

Child
The maiden of all our desires.

Teacher
What does the wind give the maiden?

Child
Whirlwinds of gold. A pileup of maps.

Teacher
And she gives him what in return?

Child
Her heart laid bare.

Teacher
Tell me her name.

Child
Her name is a secret.

(The window
In the school
Has a curtain
of stars.)