From Do Not Rise (2018)

I. salt, II. crisis, III. bright one
mezzo-soprano and piano
text by Beth Bachmann
6’

Program Note:

I have always loved Beth Bachmann's poetry for how she viscerally and fearlessly articulates base yet honest human emotions. The poems I set are derived from her 2015 book Do Not Rise, which deals with the psychology of war from a soldier’s perspective. The poems push, “...against grammar and logic and into phenomena.” As Elizabeth Willis, a contemporary, puts it. 

Performances:

  • Megan Ihnen and James Palmer, Duncan Hall, Houston, Texas, November 10, 2022.

  • Kristen DiNinno and Lydia Qiu, McIntosh Theater, Ann Arbor, Michigan, December 16, 2018.