Patricia Leonard
Seven Tears into the Sea
Year: 2010
Duration (in minutes): 0:17:00
Difficulty: Medium (college/community)
Category: larger chamber ensembles - more than 4 players
Instruments: any string, any woodwind, cello, clarinet, viola, violin
Description: Written for clarinet quintet, this piece tells the story of a seal fairy, or selkie, named Coventina. A female Selkie is able to discard her seal-skin and come ashore as a beautiful maiden. If a human can capture her seal skin, this prevents her from returning to the sea, leaving the seal-maiden to marry her “captor.” Should they return to sea, however, they are never to see their captor lover again. The legend is that if the tormented lover cries seven tears into the sea, the selkie may return to visit them.