Stars Stories Song

Our human history, our search for something greater than ourselves, and our discoveries in the process are reflected in the tales we tell. As with words, music can express our stories, and composers David Liptak and Ricardo Zohn-Muldoon present several sonic narratives, referencing authors, poets, astronomers, folk musicians, and more on their debut Ravello Records release, STARS STORIES SONG.

Each of the pieces in Liptak’s Preludes focuses on a single idea, from movements of celestial objects to imagery of lightness and darkness to short phrases from literary works, while yo no / tú sí / yo tú / sí no and Flores de Viento III by Zohn-Muldoon respectively use texts by Raúl Aceves and Laura Zohn. Liptak’s The Eye that Directs a Needle and Freight make reference to works by historical figures, the former being Maria Mitchell, one of America’s first professional astronomers, and the latter being folk guitarist Elizabeth Cotten. Daphne, for solo marimba, by Zohn-Muldoon is a musical metaphor of the Greek myth of Daphne and Apollo, depicting the nymph’s dizzying race from her pursuer. These two composers shape tales about what’s real and imagined, and what’s yet to be discovered.