Commission to Cathy Milliken

Here We Are is a participatory composition by Cathy Milliken for children’s and youth choirs and organ. Tabla player and piper Ravi Srinivasan will also take part in the performances. Almost one hundred school children and young people from various classes and choirs are taking part in the project, contributing stories and texts inspired by themes from Oliver Jeffers’ book Here We Are. The book encourages reflection on our connection to the earth, to the stars, to the oceans and to ourselves – and explores our similarities and differences.

The diverse, multilingual texts written by the participants serve as the basis for a composition by Cathy Milliken. This composition will be presented together by the children and choirs in a spoken, sung and choreographed piece of music. The tabla player takes on the role of narrator, while the organist acts as musical director and works together with the children and choirs to create a lively tapestry of stories and sounds.

A choreographic concept unfolds in the church space, encompassing the baroque organ, the listeners and the expansive acoustic environment. This concept mirrors the beginning of the book, which looks at the earth from space. The young participants will explore different areas of the church from the organ gallery, corresponding to the chapters of the book and symbolising the observation of the land, the oceans and the sky. Instruments such as smaller organ pipes, bells, stones and paper will be used in the choreography and enrich the experience alongside songs created in collaboration with the composer. The rest of the narrative celebrates the diversity of people on earth and emphasises that – despite all our differences – we are all human. By focussing on the earth, the composition becomes a positive reminder of the diverse wonders of our planet and encourages nature protection.

The commission to Cathy Milliken is funded by the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation.

Further information:
silbermann.org

Dates

May 17, 2025
St Mary’s Cathedral, Freiberg

October 11, 2025
Toulouse

May 16, 2026
Leuven