The second opera of the pair opens with this idyllic outdoor scene at a luxurious beach vacation resort. Our protagonist, the young woman from “Project Eternity”, is sipping a fancy drink with her boyfriend and his parents at an open-air restaurant. The mood is set with a relaxing and then playful mix of strings, then oboe, then clarinet.

Her boyfriend’s parents then begin, simultaneously no less, to question the young woman about her faith, which they relate they find offensive. They sing these lines as a pretty, major-key duet which, together with their accusing words, represents their passive-aggressiveness.

Both the young woman and her boyfriend answer these pointed questions — he first, with a denial that she is even a Christian, but then she, with direct honesty.

The parents then proceed to snub her, making a thinly-veiled suggestion to their son that he date a different girl. They even suggest one in particular, whom he is aware already likes him. This new information to the young woman provokes a jealous look from her to him. His parents then continue giving their simplistic and unsolicited advice.

Download “Advice” score