Go Back and Wait Copyright ©2024 Alphasongs LLC (ASCAP) - www.Alphasongs.net Lyrics by Kai Cofer, Music by Matthew L. Kearns From: The Process, a play by Kai Cofer. Yeah! Verse 1 (Defendant 1 – Mezzo-soprano) The sound of the clock ticks loud and clear awaiting an answer that we never hear. Eagerly hoping for clues to our fate. Never an answer. Go back and wait! Verse 2 (Joseph – Tenor) Wait! Wait! I need a response I need a reply. Wait's not an answer. I need to know why. I have done nothing for them to litigate. Time is too precious to go back and wait! Verse 3 (Defendant3 – Bass/Rapper) “Ask and you will receive.” That I do not believe. I've been asking for over a year No one listens. They do not hear! My future and all to which I relate hangs in the balance, yet I have to wait! I need a "Yes!", a "Go ahead" sign or even a "No," so I can resign. Verse 4 (Defendant2 – Baritone/Rapper) Ask and you will receive that I do not believe I've been asking for over a year No one listens. They do not hear! Verse 5 (Defendant3 – Bass/Rapper) Always slow and always late. Never an answer Go back and wait! All I can anticipate. Never an answer Go back and wait! Verse 6 (Defendants – All voices) We stand in a line and still in a rut. We mumble and stumble. Waiting for what? After a time. Resign'd to our fate. Never an answer. GO BACK AND WAIT!   Notes: We find our main character, Joseph, having to come to grips being one of the defendants waiting in line for court processing, a fact he barely believes at this point in the play. So, the other defendants are basically communicating the reality of the circumstances, being in line, while Joseph is still professing his disbelief. As I was writing this song, I felt it could be stronger to get back to some good strong rap verses coming from the two lower voices in the verses where they take the lead. Fun to mix acappella with hip-hop. Like in the first two songs, we have acapella harmonies and rhythms backing up the leads from a small mixed choir, but this time each of the voices take the lead until the last verse done in a crisp four-part harmony with the title message at the end. Performance Notes: This song has 4 different actors taking the lead in different verses and in the theatre performance, these lead parts are intended to be performed in rap, rather than sing. The notes designated for rap are shown with crossed noteheads in this score. But these notes also have a musical position on the staff and in a concert performance outside of the theatrical presentation, the lead part could be sung with the note positions and values in this score. The “melody” in the singing version is meant to be on a chord note with minimal motion in the melody when the chord changes and no melodic motion for the duration of the chord. Basically, crossed noteheads means a theatre performance of this song in rap and a concert performance that could be rapped or sung. This piece is scored for small to medium vocal ensemble. The theatre performance will generally have one person on a part. There is a written hand clap part in this score. The clap line is a suggested starting point for adding rhythmic emphasis to this song, The clap line can also be a starting point for a good improvisational beat boxer add to add their rhythmic improvisations to enhance the beat and rhythms in this song even further. Audio tracks generated with Cantamus software