Stop the Clock
Duration:7'
Instrumentation: Soprano, Pno, Perc, VlnI, Vln2, Vla, Vc
Premiere (in concert):Year of Composition: 2019 |
Stop the Clock was written for Fear No Music's Justice (Just Us) season opening concert: Hearings. Selected as one of eight works from a call for proposals in late 2018, Stop the Clock was written in response the the 2018 Kavanaugh Hearings.
Program notes: Through found text and poetry, Stop the Clock brings a musical voice to Christine Blasey-Ford's statements during the 2018 "Kavanaugh Hearings." As the music becomes further embroiled in traumatic memory, the final stanza of the poem is overlaid with institutional commentary and statements of solidarity, conveying two interlocking messages: "I believe you," and "you're not alone." |
Texts:
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There is Frost
There is frost upon the meadow now just as there has always been: a silent shroud to let the silence out until the fear pulls it back in. The snows have melted since the rains came, – crystalline dews are forgetting their claims – and the silken meadow on the valley floor now refuses the loss of her name. - Carolyn Quick |
Washington Post Kavanaugh Hearing Transcripts (2018):
I will never forget [12] There was music playing [12] It was hard for me to breathe [12] The laughter, the uproarious laughter [28] I was able to get up and run [13] They were laughing at each other [28] I was very conflicted [14] I don’t have all the answers [12] I am terrified [11] My greatest fears have been realized [15] The reality has been far worse [15] I’ve seen my life picked apart [16] I don’t understand [13] Stop the clock [67] Yes stop the – stop the clock [57] My responsibility is to tell you the truth [16] You’ve never forgotten [28] Our institutions have not progressed [7] This is a shameful way to treat our witness [3] Bravery is contagious [27] I believe you [59] I believe you [75] You’re not alone [65] |
