Date of Award
Summer 6-3-2015
Document Type
Poster
Department
Music
First Advisor
Kenneth Logan, Ph.D.
Second Advisor
Marianne Kordas, M.A.
Abstract
The internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II caused the suffering and fragmentation of many families. One internee, Mary T. Matsuzawa, authored a prayerful poem entitled “My Plea” that I see as expressing her thoughts on freedom, equality, and servitude as a “cross-bearer” for the Japanese-American people. Musical imagery, text painting, and historical context are used to craft a choral setting of Matsuzawa’s poem, scored for SATB mixed choir and cello. The purpose of this work is both to draw attention to the Japanese-American internment and to portray Matsuzawa’s suffering and longing while displaying the hope and comfort she had as a result of her faith in God.
Recommended Citation
Momohara, Michael M., "My Plea: A Musical Portrait of a Japanese Internment Poem by Mary T. Matsuzawa" (2015). Posters, Presentations, and Papers. 23.
https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/student-works/23