War Elegy
Katharine O'Connell
About this work:
War Elegy (2009)
This piece was written to accompany a sculpture by Irina Koukhanova. In it, the figures are made of twisted metal, barely recognizable as people, but their hands are made of clay and are incredibly expressive. Machine guns are pointing at the three figures, and barely visible, small guns point back at those shooting outside of the frame of reference. In one corner, there is a small water pipe, a symbol of possible cleansing, purity or perhaps drowning. The work is intensely affecting and sent me on an intellectual and emotional journey that encompassed months.
I read several volumes of war poems by soldiers from World War I to the present, and watched many documentaries of soldiers who fought in Vietnam and Iraq. I read archives of newspaper articles on the Iraq war and the soldiers’ experiences upon returning home. I found myself remembering how difficult it was for my grandfather, who had flown bombers in World War II, to find a place for himself in civilian life. I kept thinking about what something Irina had said about her sculpture: that the guns pointing back at the machine gunners signify that even the aggressors are victims in war. No one goes unscathed.
The music, then, is a sort of meditation on and memory of the sculptural scene from the perspective of one of the machine gunners long after the event. The opening music struggles with emotion and sadness interrupted by pizzicato, which to me represents the ticking of a clock, or the soldier’s own heartbeat. Moments of anguish alternate with angry, driving adrenaline, and passages evoke the cocky strutting of young soldiers ready to “kill the bad guys.” There are some brief quotes of war songs I remember my grandfather singing, “When Johnny Comes Marching Home,” and “You’re in the Army Now.” The final section of the piece is a chorale, which holds forth the possibility of renewal and peace. The opening music returns, signifying something I learned from my grandfather: that war memories never go away, and that there is a profound loneliness in being a soldier surrounded by civilians who do not share his memories. Even from a perspective of safety back home, this scene continues to remind us of the horror and tragedy of war.
Year composed: 2009
Duration: 00:08:30
Ensemble type: Solo instrument, non-keyboard:Cello
Instrumentation: 1 Cello