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“Worker 21486 - Life and Death in the Hive” is an orchestral piece that describes the life - and eventual death - of a worker bee. Known only by her number, she is just one of the tens of thousands of bees in a large colony. 

This piece was inspired by poems written by two women, about a century apart. “The Bee,” written by Emily Dickinson, is an upbeat description of a bee’s daily life. “The Death of the Bee,” written by Linda Pastan, is a more somber reflection on the decline of bees around the world, not just the death of an individual bee. 

In this piece, I use texture and color as compositional parameters. Musically speaking, I started thinking in this direction when I got the chance to play John Adams’ “The Chairman Dances” with my school orchestra. That got me to listening to his other works, especially the first movement of “Harmonielehre” which is a musical inspiration for this piece.

Worker 21486 - Life And Death In The Hive

Inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's poem "Spirits of the Dead."

A Mystery of Mysteries

“Worker 21486 - Life and Death in the Hive” is an orchestral piece that describes the life - and eventual death - of a worker bee. Known only by her number, she is just one of the tens of thousands of bees in a large colony.

This piece was inspired by poems written by two women, about a century apart. “The Bee,” written by Emily Dickinson, is an upbeat description of a bee’s daily life. “The Death of the Bee,” written by Linda Pastan, is a more somber reflection on the decline of bees around the world, not just the death of an individual bee.

In this piece, I use texture and color as compositional parameters. Musically speaking, I started thinking in this direction when I got the chance to play John Adams’ “The Chairman Dances” with my school orchestra. That got me to listening to his other works, especially the first movement of “Harmonielehre” which is a musical inspiration for this piece.

Worker 21486 - Life and Death in the Hive (Standard Orchestration)

Anika Fuloria

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