Jake Heggie and Earthrise

Jake Heggie is an American composer who has written a variety of classical pieces, including operas, choral works and chamber works. His opera Moby Dick is one of my favorites. In 2017, he wrote a chamber piece called “Earthrise: December 24, 1968 for Musical Saw and String Quartet.” It’s unusual to find pieces that are written specifically for the musical saw, and I was excited to learn of this piece, especially since it was written by a composer whose work I truly admire. Anita Orne plays the saw in this video along with the Miro Quartet, and it’s beautiful. The piece was inspired by the photo of the earth, Earthrise, that was taken by astronaut William Anders in 1968 as he circled the moon. Relax and listen.

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Ro

Rowena Southard, your blog hostess, is a musical saw enthusiast who lives in California. She loves all kinds of music and has a special fondness for unusual instruments.