Robert Kyr Earth Vigil

Robert Kyr’s Earth Vigil invokes the power of music to speak from the deepest parts of ourselves. In this time, when so many are feeling the extreme urgency of the climate crisis and hearing the cries of our imperiled planet, we share this new composition with tremendous gratitude. Earth Vigil is an environmental oratorio for two principal soloists (soprano and baritone), chorus, and seven instrumentalists commissioned by Conspirare. The work is a sequel to A Time for Life, also an environmental oratorio, the first Kyr work performed by Conspirare. As a musical storytelling, Earth Vigil traces the journey of two persons, a woman and a man named Alesha and Tallis. They are drawn together through their love of Nature and their concern for the environment, as they personally witness the devastating effects of global climate change. This work is a fusion of oratorio and opera, which I call a “choral drama.” In this new musical genre, the chorus is one of the principal characters, and its vocalists take many different roles; they are soloists, as well as members of vocal chamber ensembles and singers within the full chorus. With soloists Awet Andemicael and Stephen Lancaster.