MUSIC AS MESSAGE ->>> Towards Climate Action and Hope.

As a musician I often feel like a messenger : a messenger for the piece, for the emotions or imagination of the composer, for the state of mind of an era or Zeitgeist, for feelings of connection to a higher reality we might call 'spiritual', or even for a cause or call to action, sometimes quite tangible and earthly...

Last winter I premiered "On the Brink", Theodore Wiprud's violin concerto no. 2, on the theme of climate change with the South Dakota Symphony under the baton of maestro Delta David Gier. In a five-part journey from vicious to virtuous cycles, through various probing themes and motives, the piece explores our capacity for positive action in the face of climate despair, turning anxiety into hope for our humanity's future on planet earth. The project was also supported by the wonderful team at climatemusic.org.

The piece's message was enhanced by evocative visuals created by brilliant projection designer Camilla Tassi. This collaboration confirmed for me the value of interdisciplinary work, and how much our visual sense, when included in accordance with the meaning of the music, can truly be an extension of interpretation, adding to the penetrative power of the piece.

As a soloist, my role is to serve and amplify the message, to transmit its frequency - in sound - to the audience. Ultimately, I am a humble messenger, acting as a channel for something that reaches far beyond me. I gladly embrace this role, because I strongly believe in humanity's capacity to overcome hardship, negativity, adversity and aversion, be it from within or without. And instead, we then choose to manifest and assert the highest version of ourselves, making our most unique and personal contribution to society as a whole and to our even broader ongoing collective awakening.

I hope to share this piece with many more audiences, starting with you. Watch the livestream of the premiere HERE.