All the Songs that Nature Sings
by Stephen Lias
14’ / 2017In the summer of 2012, I had the amazing privilege of serving as the first-ever Artist-in-Residence at Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska. During my time there, I spent five days on a floating cabin in South Sandy Cove, spend a day on the whale research boat, traveled up-bay to the glaciers, and interviewed a Tlingit Elder. It was a life-changing and inspiring two weeks.
The resulting piece of music is a 12-minute orchestral piece that follows the dramatic arc of the this poem written during the residency.
It was premiered in March, 2014 by the East Texas Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Richard Lee.
It received its Alaska premiere in November of 2016 where it was presented with synchronized projected images from Glacier Bay. The images add considerable depth to the performance and help guide the listener on the musical journey through this majestic and mysterious landscape.
