Meredith Monk: Songs of Ascension

Songs of Acsension explores musical and spatial motifs that highlight rising sound and movement to convey the spiritual or otherworldly. With the architecture of a cathedral or tower as a metaphor, and historical grounding in the devotional practices and rituals that evoke ascension, Monk draws inspiration from the processionals of Buddhist stupas, Moses’ journey up the 4000 steps of Mt. Sinai, and the Tawaf around the Ka’Bah in Islam. Songs of Ascension is written for vocal ensemble and string quartet and was created in collaboration with multimedia artist Ann Hamilton.

This video appears on boosey.com by the kind permission of Meredith Monk and the House Foundation for the Arts.