Duration

ca. 9 minutes

Dedication

Written for and commissioned by Alyssa Burkhalter and Julia Reparip

Premiered

April 16, 2022 — Julia Reparip (viola) and Alyssa Burkhalter (double bass)
Choral Recital Hall, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN

Program Note

The title Balaenoherz is derived from a convoluted and deliberately imprecise translation of Latin and German that could equally mean "Whale Heart" or "Monster Heart." This piece seeks to channel the tragic beauty of blue whales. These peaceful titans—the largest animals to ever live—once numbered in the hundreds of thousands before whaling decimated their populations, leaving the survivors scattered across our vast oceans. Now, even amid the most tumultuous seas, their songs pierce the waves as they call out in search of one another.