Like many other psalms, Psalm 86 presents a praise to God alongside an emphatic plea for salvation. What attracted me to this specific text is its central poetic metaphor: listening. Throughout much of the piece, the choir sings as one, asking to be heard. The opening cry, “bow down your ear, O Lord, hear me” inspired the bending melodic gesture that permeates the entire composition. Commissioned by the 2021-22 Yale Glee Club Chamber Singers, the piece uses selected verses from Psalm 86, sung in Hebrew, my mother tongue.