FM176

Lonely Waters

arranged for solo piano

with optional voice part

E. J. Moeran

arr. John Mitchell

£9.95

This work is based on a fragment of song still frequently to be heard on Saturday nights at certain inns in the Broads district of East Norfolk. Whenever possible, it is preferable to perform the piece in the version with a voice part; but it should be understood that the singer need not be a professional one, in fact anybody with a clear and natural manner of singing may sing the verse. And in any case, the singer must be in an unobtrusive position, sitting at the back of the orchestra or out of sight altogether.

—E. J. Moeran

Having loved and admired this work of ‘Jack’ Moeran for about forty years, it was a real pleasure to arrange it for piano solo, and I am grateful here to Peter Thompson for his encouragement in this connection.

In line with Moeran’s wishes, there is an alternative vocal ending provided. Pianists performing the arrangement as a solo should simply play pages 1 to 7 inclusive. If the version with voice is being performed, at the end of bar 106 on page 7 there is a cut to the top of page 8 (bar 131) [see sample pages below].

The first performance of this arrangement was given by the arranger (piano), with Jennifer Bastable (voice) at the Annual General Meeting of the Peter Warlock Society at Brompton Oratory Lodge, London, on 12th May 2012.

—John Mitchell

Lonely Waters is one of a pair of short orchestral pieces (the other being Whythorne’s Shadow) that Moeran wrote in 1931 as Two Pieces for Small Orchestra. Both pieces are based on existing melodies: Lonely Waters on a folksong and Whythorne’s Shadow on an Elizabethan tune. Both have been arranged for piano solo by John Mitchell and are available from Fand.

Sample pages

FM176-1 FM176-2 FM176-3 FM176-4

(Click to enlarge)

Composer Title Grade Vocal range Forces Duration
E. J. Moeran
arr. John Mitchell
Lonely Waters
arranged for solo piano
with optional voice part
8 to Advanced (post-Grade 8)C♯ to D♯'Voice, Piano9½ mins

Catalogue code: FM176Published: 1st July 2012
Entry last updated: 2nd July 2012