Dr. Troy Robertson, the Director of Choirs at Tarleton State University, had his original work gain high-profile exposure when it was performed at the national convention of the American Choral Directors Association in Dallas. 

The Florida State University Singers, for whom it was specifically created, performed Dr. Robertson’s composition, titled “This Mystery”. The performance was held on the evening of March 15 at the Winspear Opera House, and on March 16 at the Meyerson Symphony Center.

Dr. Kevin Fenton, who is the professor of choral conducting and ensembles, and director of University Singers and the Vocal Jazz Ensemble at Florida State University, is a mentor and friend of Dr. Robertson.  Dr. Fenton asked Dr. Robertson to write the piece.

In an e-mail, Dr. Robertson described his piece for JTAC News:  “I composed the piece in memory of a friend who had been a Singer […] It is a challenging work, moving through a few different keys and requiring the singers to excel at unison singing as well as splitting into as many as eight parts. It also requires them to sing very loudly and very soft, very high and very low, and even included a little bit of acting for the opening sequence, written to capture the audience’s attention. The text is an excerpt from Whitman’s ‘I have heard what the talkers were talking,’ a poem that explores the importance and preeminence of the here and now, as opposed to the relevance or uncertainty of past and future.”

When Dr. Robertson witnessed the performance, he said it was “incredibly humbling to see it performed on the national stage for my peers around the country (and the world) […] [The University Singers] sang from memory, and their connection to the work showed in their facial expression and their physical commitment to the music.”

Dr. Robertson was pleased with how the piece was received, but said that the most gratifying part was when the FSU students shared with him after the performance on how they were impacted by it.  Several students had known the friend that the piece was written in memory of.