The Earth Requiem is a symphony in four movements, each written by a major composer from New York, Phnom Penh, London and Los Angeles, with a libretto written by Diana Wege.
The libretto to the first movement begins... “The Devil will be delighted to watch Mankind destroy the Creator’s favorite planet,” a refrain that is repeated in many of the thirty-seven languages in the Requiem. Each movement escalates the phrase's urgency, building to a crescendo that implores the audience to “Wake Up” and intervene.
Each composition is reflective of its composer's individual style and the musical conventions of their hemisphere. They are performed by a full orchestra that includes traditional Cambodian instruments.
Concert Video
Composers
Eve Beglarian, Composer
Eve Beglarian “is a humane, idealistic rebel and a musical sensualist.” A 2017 winner of the Alpert Award in the Arts for her “prolific, engaging and surprising body of work,” she has also been awarded the 2015 Robert Rauschenberg Prize from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts for her “innovation, risk-taking, and experimentation.” Beglarian’s chamber, choral, and orchestral music has been commissioned and widely performed.
Sophy Him, Composer
Trained at the Moscow Conservatory of Music as well as the Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh, Dr. HIM brings a unique perspective to his endeavors. His previous works have demonstrated an unparalleled facility for bringing Western and Khmer musical worlds into intimate conversation. These traditional musical forms are crucial for honoring the dead; unfortunately, live performances are seldom heard in the capital and rapidly disappearing in the countryside.
Errollyn Wallen, Composer
Errollyn Wallen – ‘renaissance woman of contemporary British music’ (The Observer) – is as respected a singer-songwriter of pop-influenced songs as she is a composer of contemporary new music. Communication is at the center of both worlds: engaging the audience, speaking directly to hearts and minds. She has been commissioned by outstanding music institutions from the BBC to the Royal Opera House and performed her songs internationally.
Jeff Beal, Composer
Jeff Beal is an American composer of music for film, media, and the concert hall; his works are infused with an understanding of rhythm and spontaneity. Beal has received 19 prime-time Emmy nominations and won five statues for his music, including Netflix House of Cards, and HBO’s Rome and Carnivale. The NY Times wrote of “the richness of Beal’s musical thinking…his compositions often capture the liveliness and unpredictability of the best improvisation.”
Languages
Afrikaans • Amharic • Arabic • Bengali • Czech • English • Finnish • French
German • Greek • Hawaiian • Hebrew • Hindi • Icelandic • Indonesian
Italian • Japanese • Khmer • Lao • Lithuanian • Mandarin • Norwegian
Pashto • Portuguese • Punjabi • Slovenian • Spanish • Swahili • Swedish
Tagalog • Tamil • Turkish • Ukrainian • Urdu • Uzbek • Vietnamese