Fallen
2020
for solo piano
ca. 8 min
Daniel Overly, piano
How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! [how] art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. (Isaiah 14:12 - 15)
Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. (Revelation 12:7 - 9)
Program Notes:
When I first encountered Alexandre Cabenel’s painting The Fallen Angel (1847), I experienced a sense of darkness. In writing this piece, I was struck by Lucifer’s insatiable lust for power as well as his overwhelming superiority complex that inevitably becomes his downfall. Additionally, the following two biblical references appear in the score and help drive the trajectory of this piece:
Both the painting and the above excerpts inspired me to write a piece about Lucifer. The piece opens with a depiction of Lucifer planning to conquer Heaven and overthrow God with his army. The following section represents chaos brewing as Lucifer’s army marches toward Heaven. I portray Archangel Michael’s entrance with a climatic whole-tone scale leitmotif. The achieved augmented triads symbolize the purity and wholeness of Michael. Soon after Michael’s entrance, the two armies engage in battle. I sought to portray Lucifer in a six-figure tritone motive that contrasts the seven-figure, higher pitched motive that represents Michael. Following the heated battle, a victorious Michael casts Lucifer down to Hell. I illustrate this through a descending figure in the left hand juxtaposed with a piercing fragment of the Dies irae chant in the right hand. Finally, I end the piece by reintroducing the opening section to symbolize Lucifer pondering and plotting his revenge while he lays in Hell.