A Word Is Dead…
Song · digital release
A setting of Emily Dickinson’s poem asking when a word begins to live: before or after it is spoken. The musical treatment of the text and persistent repetitions at the end explore uncertainty in communication and the distance between what is said and what is heard.
Work details
Programme note
Some maintain that a word remains alive while it has not been spoken. Can it have meaning for someone if it is never uttered—and, if so, what meaning? The poet proposes that a word leaves the shadowy world of limitless possibilities and meanings and acquires substance when someone uses it. It needs daylight to breathe. Yet is merely uttering it enough to bring it to life? Would it breathe in the same way for everyone? Perhaps it will never be heard; perhaps it will not be spoken, yet someone will hear it. The obsessive repetitions at the end create an inner conflict and confusion, recalling George Bernard Shaw’s observation about communication and the illusion that it has taken place.
Credits
Tracks & movements
- The Word Dies