From the composer’s website: “Ro - Uro is written for and first performed by Det norske jentekor/The Norwegian Girls Choir. It is the first work in a trilogy for girls choir by Maja S. K. Ratkje, ASYLOS being the second and Sirkling the third. “Ro - Uro (Rest - Unrest) is about war and peace, order and chaos. It lets us know through the use of old, pre Christian texts from the Nag Hammadi Library, how chaos evolves when the sources of the universe are not in balance. It brings in from the shadow of modern Christianity the feminine power of God, through the myth of Sophia. “The piece challenges the choir members to use not only their voices, but also movement on stage space. The piece is composed with light design, and directions. The use of folk songs is important, as giving new hope through the playground material and lullabies. . . .” The work was scheduled for performance at the U.N. building in NY, and had its invitation canceled at the last minute, perhaps because at one point the singers are encouraged to ad lib the names of tyrants and others who have abused power. Personally, I hope the result of this will be that the victims of such abuses, and the vast majority of humanity who refrain from committing them, will make it a point to hear, consider, and be inspired by this challenging piece.
From the composer’s website:
“Ro - Uro is written for and first performed by Det norske jentekor/The Norwegian Girls Choir. It is the first work in a trilogy for girls choir by Maja S. K. Ratkje, ASYLOS being the second and Sirkling the third.
“Ro - Uro (Rest - Unrest) is about war and peace, order and chaos. It lets us know through the use of old, pre Christian texts from the Nag Hammadi Library, how chaos evolves when the sources of the universe are not in balance. It brings in from the shadow of modern Christianity the feminine power of God, through the myth of Sophia.
“The piece challenges the choir members to use not only their voices, but also movement on stage space. The piece is composed with light design, and directions. The use of folk songs is important, as giving new hope through the playground material and lullabies. . . .”
The work was scheduled for performance at the U.N. building in NY, and had its invitation canceled at the last minute, perhaps because at one point the singers are encouraged to ad lib the names of tyrants and others who have abused power. Personally, I hope the result of this will be that the victims of such abuses, and the vast majority of humanity who refrain from committing them, will make it a point to hear, consider, and be inspired by this challenging piece.