Listen: For Three Sopranos and Three Altos

Listen was written in collaboration with the composer and santour performer Atefeh Einali for an installation at the People’s History Museum in Manchester, England. We decided to create separate arrangements of the same text, thus emphasizing alternative interpretations and allowing visitors to make their own connections between the two installations. I commissioned my sister, Zivah Goodman, to write a poem for us on the theme of women’s rights in Iran. We specified, however, that the text should be rather abstract, allowing room for us to develop alternative interpretations and to create subtle differences in the nuances of the text.

In my piece, various adaptations of the chant “Do not listen to my voice” play around with the idea of using a negative command to achieve the opposite outcome, representing the power of passive protest, and reflecting on a number of important considerations that continue to shape the reception of protest movements today: Whom do we listen to?, what do we hear?, and how do we interpret what we hear? The all-female group of singers represents figures of the past and present, women whose identity is at times anonymized through the use of the mask or liberated through its removal.

Since the piece was originally performed in collaboration with other installations happening simultaneously throughout the museum, it was agreed that the players should intercept these performances, thus highlighting the role of human interaction and the restrictions people impose on each other’s lives. A moment of particular importance in the original performance took place when the singers of

Fig. 1.

Composition project at the People’s History Museum with performers Tessa Tang, Louise Pidoux, Eliorah Goodman, Poppy Smallwood, Harriet Russ (from left to right), and Sasja Haeck (not present in the photo). Photo courtesy Tessa Tang.

Listen interrupted the performance if “Give Me My Voice Back,” by Einali. Future performers of the work may choose to stand in place but are encouraged to move through space during the performance.

Materials

• • Six signs, double sided, each bearing a different variation of the phrase “Do not listen to my voice,” with emphasis on the first syllable of each word (e.g., “Do not listen to my voice,” “Do not listen to my voice,” etc.). The other side (of all signs) should read “Give me a wave if you’d like to hear me sing!”

• • Six plain white masks.

• • One tuning fork.

• • If the piece is to be performed while moving through space, a map of the path may be necessary.

Dress

• • Preferably all-white clothing (otherwise black).

• • Signs are worn around neck showing variations of “Do not listen to my voice” unless a singer has been instructed to turn a sign over. Signs are allocated from Sop 1 with the first variation to Alto 3 with the final variation.

• • Masks are carried around the neck or on the head, unless instructed otherwise.

• • Shoes with hard soles are preferable.

Structure: (minimum time required for a single repetition of the entire piece is eleven minutes)

At the premiere in the People’s History Museum, the performance was structured to map the sounds to the space according to the following schedule; future performers are encouraged to design similar associations in their own space:

• • Stairs (ca. 1′27″)

• • Gallery 1 (ca. 4′): enter through the exit

• • Stairs (ca. 1′20″)

• • Exhibition space (ca. 5′–10′)

• • Return to the First Floor Gallery to coincide with the end of the performance of “Give Me My Voice Back” in the minitheater.