22 jan 2023
"Wild Imagination," a new collaboration with the American Wild Ensemble, premieres this spring. Artistic directors Emlyn Johnson (flute) and Daniel Ketter (cello) founded the American Wild Ensemble in 2016 around a project to perform new works in national parks across the US. They continue to curate exciting events in unconventional spaces, from the Smithsonian, to libraries, to caves and mountaintops. Described as “innovative” by the Washington Post, their work has been supported by Chamber Music America, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Copland fund, among many other sources.
Their latest commissioning project centers around children's literature, and I am delighted to be a part of it. Like the artistic directors, I believe that good children's literature not only reaches younger readers, but it also has a way of disarming adults, often hiding emotional and artistic depth beneath a simple surface. From my earliest conversations with Emlyn and Daniel about this project, I knew that I would set one of my favorite books, Arnold Lobel's Owl at Home, which Lobel's estate graciously granted me permission to set.
Like many, I grew up with the stories of Frog and Toad, Mouse Soup, and so many others, but Owl and his adventures at home have stayed with me in a special way. Whether Owl lets winter into the house or makes friends with the moon, his escapades are silly and whimsical on the surface, but each story touches on a deeper theme: an active imagination can be scary, you can’t be in two places at once, it’s always best to be kind, even when you’re not treated kindly in return, and “it’s always a little sad to say good-bye to a friend.” My favorite, perhaps, is “Tear Water-Tea,” that shows the healing power of a cathartic cry. Just as a poet finds beauty in the mundane, Lobel teases out the sadness in familiar things: “chairs with broken legs,” or “mornings nobody saw, because everybody was sleeping.” In the simplest language, these stories are silly, wholesome, surreal, poignant, and profound.
"Owl in Five Stories" is a setting in which the entire book can be read. This spring, we are planning performances in Missouri, Kansas, and at Notre Dame, with more on the horizon. The program also includes works by Daniel Pesca and Ingrid Stölzel.
Their latest commissioning project centers around children's literature, and I am delighted to be a part of it. Like the artistic directors, I believe that good children's literature not only reaches younger readers, but it also has a way of disarming adults, often hiding emotional and artistic depth beneath a simple surface. From my earliest conversations with Emlyn and Daniel about this project, I knew that I would set one of my favorite books, Arnold Lobel's Owl at Home, which Lobel's estate graciously granted me permission to set.
Like many, I grew up with the stories of Frog and Toad, Mouse Soup, and so many others, but Owl and his adventures at home have stayed with me in a special way. Whether Owl lets winter into the house or makes friends with the moon, his escapades are silly and whimsical on the surface, but each story touches on a deeper theme: an active imagination can be scary, you can’t be in two places at once, it’s always best to be kind, even when you’re not treated kindly in return, and “it’s always a little sad to say good-bye to a friend.” My favorite, perhaps, is “Tear Water-Tea,” that shows the healing power of a cathartic cry. Just as a poet finds beauty in the mundane, Lobel teases out the sadness in familiar things: “chairs with broken legs,” or “mornings nobody saw, because everybody was sleeping.” In the simplest language, these stories are silly, wholesome, surreal, poignant, and profound.
"Owl in Five Stories" is a setting in which the entire book can be read. This spring, we are planning performances in Missouri, Kansas, and at Notre Dame, with more on the horizon. The program also includes works by Daniel Pesca and Ingrid Stölzel.
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