Hereafter am I - Score Suite for Choir

SCORE INFO

Suite in 3 movements for choir by composer Mark Van Overmeire (SATB). Atmospheric music with beautiful rhythms and harmonies.

INSTRUMENTATION

Soprano, Alto, Tenor & Bass (SATB)

“Hereafter am I” tells a story of discovery, reckoning, and belonging. We are ushered into this world by an intricate web of far-reaching branches. Molded by our elders, we act and behave, unknowingly to us, in surprisingly similar ways to those who came before us. The search to find out whose footsteps we are following can bring about a sense of belonging; or a reckoning that one has to live with.

MOVEMENTS

1. Torch of the past
2. Beyond the gaze
3. From this day on

Music and lyrics by Mark Van Overmeire

Duration: circa 16 minutes

Finalist of The American Prize (2026)

Published in 2024

Catalog number: SC-2024-02

LYRICS

1. Torch of the past

Torch in hand I walk a path that shies away from the light I cast
My heart tells me I am not the sum of the sins of your past

At the gate of sorrows I stand, my head held high
I step out of the shadows, raising my arms to the sky

From afar a snare drum whispers in my ear what is hard to hear
My feet go faster and faster, I run to keep my mind clear

I grasp a chance of hope and will stay on this merry-go-round
I crawl out of this slope and raise my voice to shout

It’s my life. It’s my life
Do you know how I feel? Do you?
It’s my life
Do you know how I feel?

I hear that your secrets and lies met at the end of a tight rope
In darkness, the feeble warmth of candlelight helps me to cope

I show and tell just who I am. This is me in all my glory
I show and tell just who I am. This is what makes my story

Here I am before you all, I hear you say that it will not last
Here I stand and you will see, I will carry the torch of the past

I grasp a chance of hope and will stay on this merry-go-round
I crawl out of this slope and raise my voice to shout

It’s my life. It’s my life
Do you know how I feel? Do you?
It’s my life
Do you know how I feel?

Come what may around the corner, I am here and will play my part
Come what may around the corner, I will listen to my heart

2. Beyond the gaze

A glimpse of the past. To know who you are. A glimpse back in time
I want to know. I want to know. To know who you are
Across time and space, the bond we feel is real

We are the same you and me
Just like a flame that burns for all to see

A glimpse back in time of you. You are like a dream come true
I go back in time for you
I want to know. I want to know. To know who it is you are. To feel alive in what I find

Beyond the gaze in the old frame. Beyond the stare the past remains
Beyond the look. Beyond the pose. Beyond the gaze in the old frame
I go back in time for you
I want to know. I want to know. To know who it is you are. To feel alive in what I find

Across time and space, the bond we feel is real
We are the same, you and me
Just like a flame that burns for all to see

I go back in time to know the truth. And you are like a distant dream come true

Beyond the look. Beyond the pose. Beyond the stare the past remains
Beyond the look. Beyond the pose. Beyond the gaze in the old frame

To know who it is you are
I want to know. I want to know. I go back in time for you. To feel alive in what I find
Beyond the gaze in the old frame. I see we are the same
Across time and space I see we are the same

We are the same. We are the same. We are the same
Just like a flame. Just like a flame. Just like a flame

The same

3. From this day on

It is quite strange how life turns out
You are like me. That I can see
One cannot change who oneself is
We’re what we are. Just like a star

Do you feel the roots that make you?
Feel the strength that comes through?
Bonded through time. What’s yours is mine
Bonded through time. You make me shine

Down memory lane. It’s time to take me back home
Memory lane. And I will never be alone
Bonded through time. What’s yours is mine
Bonded through time. You make me shine

Turning. Spinning. Endlessly
Whirling. Reeling. Out of glee

I walk like you. I talk like you
From this day on. I am like you
I think like you. I feel like you
From this day on. I am like you

Do you feel the roots that make you?
Feel the strength that comes through?
Bonded through time. What’s yours is mine
Bonded through time. You make me shine

Down memory lane. It’s time to take me back home
Memory lane. And I will never be alone
From this day on. What’s yours is mine
From this day on. You make me shine

Turning. Spinning. Endlessly
Whirling. Reeling. Out of glee

I am who I am. It’s what it is
So true. What else is new?
I am who I am. It’s what it is
So true. Nothing to do

Feel the roots that make you?
Feel the strength that comes through?

Bonded through time. What’s yours is mine
Bonded through time. You make me shine
From this day on. What’s yours is mine
From this day on. You make me shine