ANU composer's work to debut in Detroit

A composer from The Australian National University (ANU) School of Music has teamed up with an award-winning poet from the United States to create a new work about growing up in Detroit and the city’s decline as the centre of the US auto industry.

 

The work, titled Hum, will premiere in Detroit, Michigan on Saturday 17 September.

 

Made up of five separate poems intertwined with ensemble music from six instruments including the clarinet, saxophone and violin, Hum is a collaboration between American poet Jamaal May and Melbourne-based composer and pianist Andrew Harrison, a PhD student from the ANU School of Music.

 

The work focuses on Jamaal’s poetry and connection to his hometown.

 

“He has a remarkable ability to tackle the city’s recent turbulence and emerge unscathed, brandishing a message of hope and optimism,” Mr Harrison said.

 

The piece includes poems from Jamaal’s 2014 book, also titled Hum. They relate to the city’s economic woes following its dramatic decline following the Global Financial Crisis in 2008.

 

“A lot of the time he’s trying to connect to a message of hope. And there’s a lot of urban renewal going on very much at a grass roots level,” Mr Harrison said. 

 

“He’s always trying to come out with a message of moving forward.”

 

Written for a chamber ensemble but featuring a speaker reciting the poetry, Hum was commissioned by New Music Detroit, an ensemble that specialises in contemporary music.  

 

Some examples of Jamaal’s work included in Mr Harrison’s composition include Sky now black with birds and Pomegranate means grenade.