Year composed: 1997
Duration: 11′
Instrumentation: amplified violin, saxophone, Mallet Kat, electronic drums, keyboard, samplers, electric guitar
Notes:
In August 1992 the starved and emaciated corpse of twenty-four year old Christopher McCandless was discovered at a remote campsite in the Alaskan wilderness. McCandless’s story, which ended so tragically, is told by Jon Krakauer in a recent best-seller called Into the Wild.
McCandless was dissatisfied with the comfort and strictures of modern society, and was eager to experience life unencumbered by money and possessions. After graduating from college, he abandoned his car, burned his money, threw away the map, and went in search of raw, unfiltered experience in nature. With only a small caliber rifle and a ten pound bag of rice, he survived for four months in the wild before becoming ill and trapped by weakness and insurmountable obstacles.
It is difficult to put my finger on what attracted me to this story; I do not wish to romanticize what in some respects seem to be the actions of an overwrought teenager. However, there is more to this story than its bare details, and there is a compelling psychical drama in his solitary search for transcendence and escape from modern society. What interests me is McCandless’s capacity for high-risk action, the wish to walk so close to the edge–his was a sensibility which seems very far from my own (comfortable) life. How many of us have ever been alone, really alone in nature? Can we imagine what it would feel like to be alone and dying?
My composition Into the Wild explores the psychological aspects of this young man’s journey. I wanted to musically illustrate some of the emotional states McCandless might have gone through: innocent and joyous anticipation, eager recklessness, frustration, fear, pain, sorrow, and finally–acceptance.
This piece was made possible by a grant from the Fromm Music Foundation. It was written for and is dedicated to the Paul Dresher Ensemble.