Protest Song (2002)
Available in two versions:
Mezzo soprano and piano
Mezzo soprano, bass clarinet, piano, violin, double bass

Duration c. 5 minutes Commissioned and premiered by Sequitur ensemble, April 30, 2008, Merkin Hall, New York, NY, Mary Nessinger – vocalist.
Clear

Recording available on “Same Rivers Different” by Michael Fiday, Innova Recordings (https://www.innova.mu/albums/michael-fiday/same-rivers-different)

Program Notes

This is not a declaration of love or song of war
Not a tractate, autonym, or apologia

This won’t help when the children are dying
No answer on the way to dust

Neither anthem to rally or flag flutter
Will bring back the dead, their ashes flying

This is not a bandage or hospital tent
Not relief or the rest after

Not a wreath, lilac, or laurel bough
Not a garden of earthly delights

Peter Gizzi
December 2001

Reviews

“…a restrained yet powerful outburst of post-9/11 free-speech passion.”  

– Gramophone Magazine