Notes

When I began the process of writing "Dreams of Home,” I wanted to make sure it was tailored especially for the students at the Sylvia Mendez Newcomers School in High Point, NC, for whom I was writing the song. The school is an incredible place, with students from dozens of countries speaking dozens of languages in its hallways.

I felt a kinship with them: I also grew up in High Point, NC and have memories of my childhood thereafter moving from Mexico when I was 7. It was a whirlwind: meeting new people, learning a new language, figuring out a new culture... But we found a community there that helped me and my family thrive.

After conversations over Zoom with the students, I worked with choir teacher Tucker Gamble to gather written responses, to their level of comfort, about their journeys to the USA and their experiences adapting to a new place. The conversation and texts, along with the school motto “Where Dreams Take Off,” became the germ of the idea for "Dreams of Home.”

This work was commissioned by the New Canon Project, a partnership between the American Choral Directors Association, the American String Teachers Association, and Rising Tide Music Press, with support of the Sphinx Venture Fund and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Text

Leaving home was hard, so far away now
from friends and food and family,
But we had to take a chance to make good on all our plans
in another land—we believed!

We flew on wings of dreams, walked a thousand miles,
drove past unimaginable views,
and through cold and hate and fear, we kept our memories
here inside us—to our roots we will be true.

CHORUS
We can build a new home together
with bricks of dreams and memories.
Yes, we can build a new home together,
our past and present join as one.

The grass always looks greener across the sea
regardless of the beach you’re on,
But we open doors each day, climb one more step on the way—
in our new homes, we are building a new dawn.

CHORUS
We have built a new home together
with bricks of dreams and memories.
Yes, we have built a new home together
our past and present join as one.

We have built a home here,
You can build a home here.
Dreams of the past become
dreams for the future together.

The world might find a way to knock us down,
but the grass always looks greener when you’re around,
We open doors each day, help each other find the way
and you, my friends, are where our home is found.

Performances and Recordings

• 12 December 2024: Workshop reading at the Sylvia Mendez Newcomers School (High Point, NC)

• 22 March 2025: Reading at the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) National Conference (Dallas, TX)