Скачать или смотреть Let’s Talk About…(Kevin Curtis) - REC Percussion Ensemble

2020-21 River East Collegiate (REC) Percussion Ensemble’s recorded World Premiere Performance of "Let's Talk About..." composed by Kevin Curtis and directed by Jeff Kula.

The musicians are:
5-string Bass Soloist - Colin Corrigan (Grade 12)
Electric Guitar - Brett Smith (Grade 11)
Rhodes Electric Piano - Erika Harms (Grade 10) and Avery Penner
Alto Saxophone - Madeline Penner (Grade 11)
Percussionists - Travis Singbeil (Grade 10), Marshall Fehr (Grade 10), Carter Latoski (Grade 10), Ian Schuerfeld (Grade 11)

‘The piece attempts to express the nature of our cultural arguments, with voices interrupting and over-talking each other, and at times all talking at once so that nothing is intelligible, like in our contemporary media environment. I wanted to let the voices of young activists be heard, as I was writing the piece to be performed by a group of musicians from the very same generation as them. So I imagined all the words young people use when they raise their voices in protest, and to express their feelings on important issues like economic inequality, access to clean water, and the ecological degradation of our planet; but I also imagined all the voices of rebuttal, of denial, of obfuscation, and of ridicule, that must be heard as well, to attempt to be understood. In the piece you’ll hear the voices of some prominent climate change sceptics and deniers such as United States Senator James Inhofe (re-elected in 2020), MIT professor Richard Lindzen (who’s hypnotic incantatory voice closes out the piece on a loop), Republican political aide Marc Morano, attorney Chris Horner, climatologist Patrick Michaels, political appointee and lobbyist Myron Ebell (heard claiming that global warming’s not an issue “as long as we have air conditioning”), and religious leader Pat Robertson suggesting the “planet might be cooling”, among others. Of the youth activists in the piece, you’ll hear the voice of Canadian Indigenous water activist Autumn Peltier saying, “we can’t eat money, or drink oil.” Lost in the din is the voice of Mari Copeny demanding clean drinking water for Flynt, Michigan, where thousands of children were poisoned with lead by an incompetent government that still hasn’t solved any of the underlying issues. Varshini Prakash, founder of the Sunrise Movement spells out the effects of climate change, and Nadia Nazar, founder of Zero Hour is heard addressing world leaders on behalf of her generation. The piece opens with the voice of Mexican-Chilean climate activist Xiye Bastida inviting us to imagine a world of peace and balance, and closes with the that of Greta Thunberg the Swedish firebrand known for chastising global leaders for their failure to lead on climate change.
‘There’s an effect in acoustics called “auditory masking”, which is when a sound occurring simultaneously with another one makes the first perceptually inaudible; the signal and the noise. And while the signal today is as clear as ever, from Prince Charles and Justin Trudeau, Ezra Klein, Greta Thunberg, Sir David Attenborough, and so, so many others, it’s all too clear that too many people aren’t hearing it.’ – Kevin Curtis

Video shot in Winnipeg, Manitoba.