A Sea-Green Partridge of April is based on an Albanian lament of the same name – Një thëllëzë e shkrar prilli. A husband laments the death of his beautiful wife, the “sea-green partridge of April”. Her death “turned off” the lights in his house; his life became dark; his heart and soul are broken.
This fantasy takes the form of a set of variations based around the the harmony of song.