Two harps and electronics

This is my love letter to the Southern Resident Killer Whales of the Pacific Northwest and to all those who fight for their survival and wellbeing. Special thanks to the Orca Behavior Institute for providing sound samples of J-Pod calls used in this piece.

Scored for two harps with electronics, are you here, with me? begins with an eerie sound of wind, produced by slowly sliding across the bass strings of both harps and enhanced by electronic effects (guitar fx pedals). We also hear a distant 5-note call distinct to the J-pod orcas. Out of the depths, an expansive oceanic theme emerges, enveloping the dancers and the audience in reverberant, watery imagery.

This scene is abruptly interrupted by a menacing motif of boat motors under the water and seal bombs used to frighten a large pod of orcas into a corralled bay. Using delay pedals and distortion, the two harps portray both captor and captive, viscerally illustrating the violence of family separation and the grief experienced by another species. Serving as a continuous motif throughout the piece, the J-pod call is heard again, now distorted and confused as the orcas experience captivity in a small, concrete tank. The J-pod call is then transformed into a rhythmically restrictive, unnatural form of communication divorced from its cultural roots and environment.

Finally, there comes reprieve, either through death or through sanctuary. The piece ends with a final word from the J-pod, reharmonized as a question to all of us. Through the lens of interspecies empathy, I encourage both the performers and the listeners to consider the long-lasting impacts of forced and unnatural separation, destruction of community and culture, trauma, and grief.