Open to the Public and LiveStreamed
David Alan Miller, Heinrich Medicus Music Director
Marc Bamuthi Joseph, narrator
Devony Smith, vocalist
Daniel Bernard Roumain: Agrarian and Liquid (world premiere)
Albany Symphony String Quartet
Liz Silver, Violin I
Paula Oakes, Violin II
Sachin Shukla, Viola
Erica Pickhardt, Cello
About Agrarian and Liquid:
Agrarian and Liquid was composed centering the libretto written by my dear friend, Marc Bamuthi Joseph. We have created several works together, including the opera We Shall Not Be Moved. This is the first score I’ve created that holds and responds to each word in the libretto in a dynamic manner, and allows the musicians to hold, respond, and make decisions about the words and their meaning throughout their interpretation and performance of the music.
The notation of the score involves traditional notation and flexible notation (e.g., the use of stemless noteheads, barless staves, and ametric passages). This was in response to Joseph’s focus on the abolitionist and freedom fighter Harriet Tubman and her relationship to the Erie Canal a destination of travel, migration, tragedy, and freedom. These lyrical ideas required a musical response dedicated to allowing the musicians to be as determined, flexible, and creative as the content and character of Tubman, her work, and her rallying cry towards freedom for her community. I am grateful for Marc’s reminder of the fundamental truth of our connectedness beyond division, and for the conductor David Alan Miller, for his decades-long commitment to my work and our collaborations.
