Clouded Dusk by Anahita Abbasi
An Iranian born San Diego based composer, Anahita piece reflects on distance and separation including her personal experience with the travel ban for Iranians.
'Clouded Dusk' by Anahita Abbasi
Commissioner: Vincent Pollmeier
Voice: Jonathan Nussman
Text: Niloufar Talebi
Electronics: Anahita Abbasi
Composition & Video Editing: Anahita Abbasi
Text:
HERE WE ARE
You and I
erupted into being
our hearts began to beat
as time throbbed in the garden.
We burn on opposite sides of the world
for sand drags us down / wants to drag us down
but the impulse quickening us is untouched by harm
the greenest dance in the world.
Here we are
you and I
seeds who rose from (our) shallow beds
lilies in the sky
our existence ephemeral / fleeting
as the flare of a comet.
Do not imagine for a / one moment
that you are alone
for we lovers
are bound by the same call
to greet / reach the sun.
Here we are
you and I
sowers / gardeners of endless seeds
in valleys and plains
that bloom eternal for children to come.
From Anahita:
In this piece I wanted to depict the essence of touch and contact and the meaning of distance. All the struggles and obstacles that one faces, the inner thoughts and worries, all the emotions that one goes through, when one leaves their family and country with a bagful of hopes and dreams. This is a pain that all immigrants have faced, sort of a collective pain, when we are not able to be in physical contact with our loved ones and our homes.
During COVID, everyone somehow experienced the depth of this need. The irony is that we are in contact with everyone via zoom, but still we all desperately sense the need of being in contact with other human beings.
The piece shows a glimpse of our daily lives, the days pass by, whether sunny, foggy or cloudy ... but like the deep ocean species, we are all strong and resilient and can survive even when the sun is not reaching us. I do believe that we need to have hope and always move forward! knowing together, we can reach anything and believing that there are better days ahead of us ...
Remember to follow us:







This activity is supported in part by the California Arts Council, a state agency. Learn more at cac.ca.gov
Supported in part by a grant from the Arts Council for Long Beach and the City of Long Beach.
Long Beach Opera events are supported, in part, by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission