FOUR SONGS FROM HOME (2024) for String Quartet

This work will be available from ECS Classical in July 2026

Four Songs From Home for string quartet (2024) – Program Notes

Fait dodo, ti pitite maman – Haiti
Zim Zim – Afghanistan
Miwoe Nenyo – Ghana
Zuruni – Syria

This arrangement of four melodies from Haiti, Afghanistan, Ghana, and Syria was commissioned by the Worcester Chamber Music Society. The selection of melodies from these countries is not accidental as it reflects some of the richly diverse immigrant communities who have settled in Worcester, MA as well as the students who study music at Neighborhood Strings.

Though the melody is originally French, Fait dodo, ti pitite maman is a lullaby from Haiti that is originally sung in Créole. My arrangement for string quartet sets the cello as the mother singing to her child, and the other three string instruments as a sometimes uncooperative child who wants to stay awake just a little longer. Ultimately, sleep wins over.

Zim Zim is a song from Afghanistan made famous by the renowned singer, Ahmad Zahir (1946 – 1979). According to Wikipedia, Zahir was dubbed the “Elvis of Afghanistan”, both in terms of his popularity and his looks. Zim Zim is a love song which expresses an almost devotional bond for the beloved, “The tips of your eyebrows pierce my heart like a scorpion. I love the door, through which you pass. When I hear your voice I pause, and I am refreshed as from seeing a flowering bud.”

Miwoe Nenyo is a traditional Ghanian children’s song sung in the Ewe language. The lyrics encourage children to do well in school, and at home in order to uplift their families and communities.

Mi woe ne woanyo, dukor nakpor
Do it well for the town to see
Mi woe ne woanyo , ayeeeee
Do it well, ayeeeee
Mi woe nenyo, sukuu nya edzor
Do it well for it is school matters
Mi woe nenyo dukor oo mis3loo, dzaleleelelele
Do it well, listen to this town

Zuruni is a song originally from Aleppo, Syria, part of its traditional qudud repertoire of urban folk songs. The lyrics implore the listener, “Visit me every year once, and don’t forget me once and for all.” Its melody is in maqam of Ajam (a maqam is kind of like a scale), that has a very ‘major scale’ sound to it. There is a short instrumental section that was added by the Lebanese composer and musician, Ziad Rahbani (son of the famous singer, Fairuz). In the tradition of folk music interpretations, I incorporated elements of his addition into my arrangement.

When songs with lyrics are arranged for an instrumental ensemble, the sung text is lost. t. While that is a lot to lose, I’ve tried to imbue each arrangement with a character that hopefully captures the spirit of the lyrics. If nothing else, it gives string players a chance to play songs from home in a new setting and to share them with a wider audience. Perhaps hearing these old songs in a new setting will make us hear them in a new way, much like a flower that is removed from one part of the garden and replanted in another.