Desert composer Robert Kyr talks about his method

Each of four programs focuses on a major choral composer: Josquin Des Prez (early Renaissance), Orlande de Lassus (Renaissance), Tomás Luis de Victoria (late Renaissance), and J.S. Bach (Baroque). “Songs of the Soul is one of most special pieces I’ve ever written,” Kyr says, sipping coffee on a deck beside Lake Austin, where black coots with white bills dive for their dinner. “I’m 58, well past half of my life. It’s one of my largest pieces and one of the most profound in regard to its theme because it’s about the journey of a soul through seven stages of development. It traces my own experience. I chose texts that would create this musical journey of the soul, from the depths of despair to transcendence.”