The Earth Cried Out to the Sky

mezzo-soprano/contra alto and piano
[arr. mezzo-soprano/contra alto and chamber orchestra more info]
2022

Duration 11’
First Performance 2 July 2022, 3pm, Kissinger Sommer, Bad Kissingen, Germany; Christina Daletska mezzo-soprano, Steffen Schleiermacher piano more info
Commissioned by Kissinger Sommer, funded by the Anton and Katharina Schick Foundation

Further Performances
8.12.23 Kirchgasse 13, Zürich, Switzerland; Christina Daletska mezzo-soprano, Walter Prossnitz piano
2.05.24 New Voices Festival: First Unitarian Church of Brooklyn, 119 Pierrepont St. Brooklyn, NY, US; Emily Triebold and Brent Funderburk – Brooklyn Art Song Society US PREMIERE
24.05.24 Schloss Holligen, Bern, Switzerland; Christina Daletska, mezzo-soprano; Olivia Zaugg, piano
30.06.24 Konzerte am Ausserberg, Riehen, Switzerland; Christina Daletska, mezzo-soprano; Kirill Zvegintsov, piano

Charlotte has a worldwide, exclusive publishing agreement with Birdsong
Purchase Materials

On February 24th, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the largest attack by a state against another in Europe since World War II. This violent Russian aggression against a peaceful nation caused global shockwaves, particularly in Europe. At that time, I was in the early stages of composing a song cycle and was drawn to Ukrainian poetry. I discovered a remarkable collection titled “Words for War: New Poems from Ukraine,” which was written since the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014. As quoted from the Academic Studies Press, “Directly and indirectly, the poems collected in this volume engage with the events and experiences of war, reflecting on the themes of alienation, loss, dislocation, and disability; as well as justice, heroism, courage, resilience, generosity, and forgiveness. … The anthology brings together some of the most compelling poetic voices from different regions of Ukraine.”

I selected two poignant, powerful poems to set: “Latifa” by Ostap Slyvynsky and “An Old Mulberry Tree Near Mariupol” by Borys Humenyuk. Notably, Humenyuk has been presumed missing since December 2022, when he disappeared on the battlefield.