Response to "Book of Longing"

Dear Mr. Cohen and Mr. Glass,

I’m a student at Scripps Women’s College and I saw a performance of Book of Longing in Claremont last month. I was very impressed by this joint work. At first, I didn’t know what to expect. I had seen posters all over campus advertising the event so when my friend asked if I’d like to go, I said yes. Although I had heard both of your names before, I wasn’t familiar enough with your work to be able to picture what a fusion of your styles might entail. I thought maybe a performer would recite poetry accompanied by music and changing images. However, I could not have prepared myself for the seamless synthesis of music, poetry, and artwork that was presented during the performance.
One of the things that surprised me the most was that there were multiple vocalists. To me, this was very effective because they were able to highlight different emotions in the text. Also, when they all sang in unison, the effect was extremely powerful. I was also grateful that they were singing because I expected them to simply speak the text but their singing definitely brought out a deeper level of meaning in the text. The performers illuminated the subtleties of Mr. Cohen’s poetry through their intonation and body language. The staging was effective as well. I liked the relaxed and almost nonchalant manner in which musicians and singers entered and exited the stage. No one made a grand entrance and sometimes I didn’t even notice a performer had come onstage until he or she started singing.
I also appreciated the vast range of moods in the poetry and the way that was expressed through the music and accompanying illustrations. My favorite pieces were “You Go Your Way” and “You came to me This Morning.” I loved the nostalgia and love struck stupor invoked by the reading of “You Go Your Way.” At the same time, “You came to me This Morning,” which contains many darker elements, seemed to fit into the performance too. The coherence of the performance seemed to stem from the idea of the poems reflecting a journey through a person’s emotions and the continuously winding path that journey can take.
I think you found the perfect balance between playfulness and somberness. The artwork, music, and vocals helped give the words more life. These theatrical elements enhanced and complicated the poetry while providing a stable backdrop for the ever-shifting mood of the words. Thank you for creating such an intricate and valuable example of the relationship between words, music, and art. This performance had a haunting quality to it and definitely had a lasting effect on me.

Thank you again.

Sincerely,
Natalie Gutzler