Seal Lullaby

This is one of a set of four animal songs commissioned by the Fort Wayne Children’s Choir, directed by Fred Meads. I wanted to create a lullaby mood within a generally traditional pentatonic folk music format (it almost sounds like an Irish folk melody at times), yet with a hint of the dangers of the world (…the storm shall not wake thee, nor shark overtake thee..) lurking in some minor harmonies and unexplainable dissonances in  the piano part. Of course the “wee flippering” doesn’t know of any of these dangers, yet the parent singing the lullaby does-- and it is this parental awareness of the dangers of the world contrasting with the shared experience of the innocence of the child, that makes this text, and hopefully my setting,  poignantly melancholy. This is very similar to another text I have set in a similar fashion, James Agee’s A Lullaby.

Complete perusal score available upon request.

What others say:
"Hi I'm Kristina Gerhardt and I'm in the Fort Wayne Children's Coir! I'm in Treble Choir. The one who sings Seal Lullaby. It is such a beautiful song and I enjoy singing it. It is an honor to sing something and set the standards. Thank-you Mr. Carey"

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"The Fort Wayne Children's Choir commissioned Paul to write one piece, which eventually turned into four pieces based on texts about animals. The texts he chose were witty, eclectic and fun -perfect for young voices. His musical settings melded beautifully with the words - very singable. Our young singers really enjoyed singing his pieces and working with Paul as well. He was positive and engaging with the choirs.

Communication was great with Paul. He was to easy to work with and willing to adapt as necessary. All in all a great commissioning experience!"

Fred Meads
Artistic Director of the Fort Wayne (IN) Children's Choirs