The Will of a Sailor

A reflection on the inevitability of death, inspired by Irish folk music.

3.5 min • Composed 2023 • TTBB • SSAA • SATB

Composer’s notes

Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous “Requiem” is a melancholic reflection on the inevitability of death. I relied on simple folk-inspired harmony to communicate the text.

This piece is dedicated to my late father, Dr. Russell Biggs.

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Lyrics

Text from Robert Louis Stevenson’s poem, “Requiem.”

Under the wide and starry sky,
Dig the grave and let me lie.
Glad did I live and gladly die,
And I laid me down with a will.

This be the verse you grave for me:
Here he lies where he longed to be;
Home is the sailor, home from sea,
And the hunter home from the hill.