Douglas Moore: Giants in the Earth

• July Release from Pentatone

WORLD PREMIERE RECORDING OF DOUGLAS MOORE’S EMOTIONAL MASTERPIECE Douglas Moore’s opera Giants in the Earth receives its world premiere recording with the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra under the music direction of Delta David Gier. Set on the stark, uninhabited Dakota plains, the drama follows Beret and Per Hansa, whose deep love is tested by isolation and the harsh realities of pioneer life. Moore’s text-driven vocal lines flow with natural expression, weaving short, expressive ariosos into a seamless melodic tapestry. Central to the story, Beret’s ornate Norwegian chest serves as altar, refuge, and symbol of home, underscoring the opera’s themes of memory, tradition, and human longing. Moore’s tonal score contrasts strength and fragility through vocal ranges, building tension toward Beret’s fateful choices amid blizzards and loss. Every nuance is vividly realised, from intimate lyrical passages to the opera’s devastating climax. This landmark recording illuminates the emotional intensity, psychological depth, and lyrical beauty of a work long awaited in full, making it an essential addition for lovers of American opera.

Disc 1
1: Prelude
2: Not a Thing in Sight Yet, Far As I Can See
3: Good Morning, Good Morning!
4: Ja, Vi Elsker Dette Landet Som Det Stiger Frem (Norwegian National Anthem)
5: So This Is It! The Pastures of Goshen in the Land of Egypt (Home Founding)
6: Oh, Dear God, Bless Them
7: What Happened to Borghild?
8: Well, What About It Hans?
9: We're Not Staying, We Can't, We Can't!
10: Heave a Line!
11: The Quiet, the Quiet, the Deep, Deep Quiet
12: Mama! Mama! Look at This
13: We Can't Stay
14: No, No, No, Aren't You Afraid Here? (Home Founding Reprise)
15: Doesn't It Feel Strange With Everyone Gone?
16: What Do You Think They Will Bring Us from Town?
17: Per Hansa Came to Court Me On Sunday Afternoon
18: What Are These?
19: Coffee Is Ready. Let's Sit Down and Drink
20: Is the Man of the House About This Place?
21: The Stakes!
22: We're Home, Home Again!
23: What Do You Think, Our Last Surprise of All?
24: She Was Working in the Fields
25: And When Did You Get Married?
26: We'd Better Get Home (Home Again Reprise)
27: No, Let That Go for Now
28: You Ask What You Have Done?
29: Who Do You Say These Belong To?
30: Do You See That Field of Green Out There?
31: But the Stakes, Per, What of the Stakes?
32: Per, Per, Can We Talk to You Here?
33: I Will Thank You to Go Now

Disc 2
1: The Wedding
2: I Now Pronounce You Man and Wife
3: We're Ready for the Baptism Next
4: No, No, This Evil Deed Shall Not Be Done
5: Take Her Inside
6: Rain. We Are Going to Have Rain
7: Why Have They Gone Away?
8: God Help All of Us
9: Prelude
10: Where Go the Sheep?
11: Forget It, Henry. Nobody Can Go Out There Tonight
12: Stop It! How Can You Be Brawling Now?
13: What Can You Hear in a Storm?
14: Beret, Stop It. Do You Hear Me?
15: I Remember the Day That We Came Here
16: May God Go With You, Per

Composer: Douglas Moore

Conductor: Delta David Gier

Number of Discs: 2

Orchestra: South Dakota Symphony Orchestra

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