The groundbreaking Vox Balaenae, or Voice of the Whale, by Pulitzer Prize and Grammy award winner George Crumb calls for the amplification of the flute, cello and piano, to mirror sounds from the deep. It’s performed here as a tribute to the American composer, who recently passed away at the age of 92 after a long, and influential career.
During this performance of ‘Voice of the Whale’ each of the three musicians wore a black half-mask. In the score, Crumb directs the musicians to wear these and explains, “The masks, by effacing a sense of human projection, will symbolize the powerful impersonal forces of nature (nature dehumanized)”.
