Premiere of "Spinning Light" by Dr. Anne Marie Guzzo

[@anneguzzo4315]

Spinning Light (2023) was written in honor of the 25th Anniversary of the murder of Matthew Shepard. It was commissioned by the Shepard Symposium on Social Justice; the University of Wyoming Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; and premiere conductor, Katherine Smith.
As someone who grew up in queer in Wyoming, I have had strong, unresolved grief and other feelings about the murder of Matt Shepard. As I reread one of Dennis Shepard’s courtroom statements that had moved me to the core 25 years ago, I found it still did so today. In that statement, Mr. Shepard spoke of how on his son’s last day he had friends with him - the many beautiful elements of Wyoming’s nature, including the sparkling night sky. He talked about how he and his “ordinary boy,” Matt, would watch the sky with a telescope out on the prairie. I remember doing this with my father, too.
In Spinning Light, I wanted to emphasize the importance of what his family-and so many of us in the LGBTQ+ community-have done to bring peace, light, equality, and progress to the world. We have a long way to go, but this spirit of community, and the light that goes on inspired me to use the birth of a star as a metaphor.
I researched star-formation and learned how small pieces of stellar matter, even dust, has weight. This material gathers due to a very slight gravitational pull, and beautiful nebulae are formed. Over time, there is movement-swirling, agitating star stuff-and the gravity pulls it together. When there is enough weight, the material collapses inward, and fusion occurs. In that gravitational pull there is a strange and beautiful push in with gravity, and a push out from the fusion. In many cases, a star is then born and light spins out into space. As far as scientist know, the light of a star has the ability to go on forever. And, as we know, even after a star is gone, the light goes on.
-A. Guzzo
I. Dust 0:00
II. Gravity 4:08
III. Collapse 8:27
IV. Light 11:42
Spinning Light -Text by Anne M. Guzzo
I. Dust
Laying between the stars, laying between the stars
Dust, dust
Ordinary dust,
Just ordinary dust gathers dust to dust, dust to dust
Swirling dust, ah, dust
Gathering dust
Laying between the stars, laying between the stars
Dust, dust
Ordinary dust,
Just ordinary dust gathers dust to dust, dust to dust
Dust to dust, dust to dust
II. Gravity
The gravity, pulling, pulling
The gravity, pulling, pulling
The stellar matter, pulling, pulling
Dust to dust
Dust to dust
Stellar matter, gathering,
Stellar matter swirling
Swirling matter, star stuff, gathering, gathering
Pulling, pulling
Gravity.
III. Collapse
Ah, pressure and weight
pressure and heat
swirling, gathering
Ah, ah
pulling, pulling in
pulling, pulling in
Ah, swirling, gathering
dust and dust and stellar matter
Ah, ah
A violent collapse
IV. Light
Light, light, light perpetua
Light, light, lux aeterna
Light, light, light perpetua
Light spinning out, light spinning out,
Spinning out, spinning out forever more
Light, light, lux aeterna
Light, light spinning light
Light light, light perpetua
Light light
And even after a star is gone
The Light goes on
All Rights Reserved © Anne M. Guzzo, 2023