In the fall of 2019, pianist Ann DuHamel was feeling despondent about climate change. Wanting to do something, she launched a call for scores on January 1, 2020, requesting works for piano that respond in some way to the threat and urgency of climate disruption. She received an astounding number of pieces: more than 170 composers in over 35 countries shared more than 300 discrete movements of music. Of these, DuHamel selected 60 works for her project *Prayers for a Feverish Planet: New Music about Climate Change.* The works are wide ranging: Vanessa Cornett’s "Our World So Freely Given" combines the hymn “For the Beauty of the Earth” with the Dies Irae. The electronic track of Gunter Gaupp’s "Those Who Watch" samples voices of news anchors and billionaires who profit from fossil fuels, while voices of scientists are distorted and only truly audible in quiet moments. The score of Stephen F. Lilly’s "Vanishing" is a literal map; the performer chooses sonic events that depict islands and the encroaching rising seas. Kristian Twombly’s "Interdecadal Oscillations," inspired by Rauschenberg’s “Erased de Koonig,” filters a work of Brahms until it is practically nonexistent, like dying coral reefs. These and other imaginative, thought-provoking pieces comprise the series. This session will provide a brief overview of the project, which encompasses more than eight hours of music. The presentation will feature themes that emerged in the series alongside short sound clips; if a piano is available for a lecture-recital format, short selections may be shared.

Authors:
Ann DuHamel, University of Minnesota Morris, United States

About the Presenter(s)
Dr Ann DuHamel currently serves as Associate Professor of Music at the University of Minnesota Morris. She specializes in contemporary piano music; her current project, "Prayers for a Feverish Planet," is a musical response to climate change.

Additional website of interest
https://annduhamel.com/

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