Steel Hammer
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Steel Hammer is a 2009 composition for three sopranos and chamber ensemble by the American composer Julia Wolfe. It was first performed on November 21, 2009, at Zankel Hall by the contemporary classical music groups Bang on a Can and Trio Mediæval. The piece is based on the ballad of the African-American tall tale John Henry.[1] The composition was a finalist for the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Music.[2][3]
Structure
The text of the piece is drawn from over 200 versions of the John Henry folklore. Wolfe described her sources in the score program notes, writing:
The various versions—based on hearsay, recollection, and tall tales—explore the subject of human-versus-machine in this quintessential American legend. Many of the facts are unclear; some say John Henry is from West Virginia, others say he’s from South Carolina, still others say he’s from New Jersey. But these ambiguities aside, Henry, wielding a steel hammer, faces the onslaught of the Industrial Age as his superhuman strength is challenged in a contest to out-dig an engine. I drew upon the extreme variations of the story, fragmenting and weaving the contradictory versions of the ballad that have circulated since the late 1800s into a new whole—at times meditating on single words or phrases—to tell the story of the story, and to embody the simultaneous diverse paths it traveled.[1]
The piece has a duration of 79 minutes and is composed in nine movements:[4]
- Some Say
- The States
- Destiny
- Mountain
- Characteristics
- Polly Ann
- The Race
- Winner
- Lord Lord
Instrumentation
The work is scored for an ensemble comprising three sopranos, clarinet, percussion, guitar, piano, cello, and double bass.[1]