By Polly Ikonen, alto

Boy, it’s been a week. The emotional roller coaster of the recent national election and the uncertainty surrounding the next chapter of our world has left me feeling depleted and adrift. These are anxious times.

But then I arrived at tonight’s rehearsal, and the words of Langston Hughes’ poem “I Dream a World” - as set to luscious, surprising chords by Dave Brubeck - resonated deeply for me:

I dream a world where man
No other man will scorn,
Where love will bless the earth
And peace its paths adorn
I dream a world where all
Will know sweet freedom's way,
Where greed no longer saps the soul
Nor avarice blights our day.
A world I dream where black or white,
Whatever race you be,
Will share the bounties of the earth
And every man is free,
Where wretchedness will hang its head
And joy, like a pearl,
Attends the needs of all mankind-
Of such I dream, my world!

This work is part of our upcoming concert RETURN TO THE HEART: THE PROMISE OF PEACE, led by our longtime former music director Lynne Morrow. I’ve sung it before under her direction, but it never spoke to me with quite the impact as it did this evening. I needed to hear it tonight. Hughes and Brubeck reminded me of what’s possible when we keep our dreams active, voicing them aloud together, with open hearts and minds.

Give a listen to our rehearsal video, and then come hear us sing it live in December. It may be what you need, too.