At David Duquane’s funeral, the Rands grabbed Grief by the throat and swallowed it; that was until Mr. Demmings joined Suleimān, who choked Christoph by the throat. They plucked their strings to play Antonín Dvořák’s Romantic Piece, and their rendition sounded like a lament that cried, “Where are you, David?” Before they finished the first measure, the mourners had turned it into a round, and every part of the church echoed with love and sorrow; every voice asked why David had to leave them and where he had gone.

Méditation de Thaïs by Jules Massenet, Cello and Piano. Performed by Yo-Yo Ma with Kathryn Stott, Essential Yo-Yo Ma

Chapter Twenty: When Miss Floreen tells Keisha that the baby is dead, she hears Suleimān playing Méditation de Thaïs by Jules Massenet. The haunting resonance inspires Miss Floreen to sing what she knows best. She sings Remember This, and during Christoph’s emotional reprieve, Miss Floreen soothes Keisha, balancing her grief with a promise of peace. A moment of grace emerges, and Keisha feels it softening her from the inside out. She begins to feel what her mother has known but has never lived inside herself. Guided by her mother, Keisha embraces Christoph’s tune, and they sing:

When Keisha and Miss Floreen returned home, Miss Floreen had to break the news to Keisha that the baby was dead, and she heard Suleimān playing Max Bruch’s Kol Nidrei. As Miss Floreen listened to the sound seeping through the wall, it reached her heart, and words rose to meet the melody, capturing Kol Nidrei’s solemn syllabic proclamations and virtuoso vocal runs.