PROGRAM NOTE

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The term solastalgia was created by the environmentalist Glen Albrecht in . It expresses "a form of homesickness one gets when one is still at home, but the environment has been

altered and feels unfamiliar.” * In other words, as the climate crisis is ignored the longing for a lost world intensifies.

I explored this concept by placing tack on the strings of the piano and cello, obstructing their resonant power. By undermining the instruments’ means of projecting

discernible pitches, the familiar sounds of a piano and cello are lost. I aim to invoke nostalgia in the listener, but also a hope that something beautiful can still be captured in our changing world.

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The material of Solastalgia was inspired by Debussy's La cathédrale engloutie, a classic piano solo that envisions a cathedral overtaken by rising ocean levels. I felt comforted yet saddened by a shared environmental contemplation: that what was once a myth is now reality.

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This piece was made possible by a commission from Composing the Climate, supported by a Creative Catalyst grant from the Illinois Arts Council. Many , many thanks to Cacie, Kelly , and Dan for their vision of healing and their open arms towards the creative process.

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* https://bureauoflinguisticalreality .com/portfolio/solastalgia/