Julia Wolfe has been appointed Carnegie Hall’s 2021-2022 Richard and Barbara Debs Composer’s Chair, a residency position endowed since 1995 to introduce audiences to a range of music, reflecting the selected composer’s artistic points of view, inspirations, and influences.  

Carnegie Hall states, “Pulitzer Prize winner Julia Wolfe creates music that is emotionally charged, viscerally powerful, and socially aware, bringing unsung histories to life in riveting musical tableaux. One of the co-founders and co-artistic directors of the Bang on a Can collective, she draws inspiration from folk, classical, and rock styles to create musical journeys of powerful discovery. Carnegie Hall’s mission is to present extraordinary music and musicians on the three stages of this legendary hall, to bring the transformative power of music to the widest possible audience, to provide visionary education programs, and to foster the future of music through the cultivation of new works, artists, and audiences.” 



During the 2021-22 Season, Carnegie Hall will feature a selection of Ms. Wolfe’s works including Steel Hammer, Oxygen, With a blue dress on, Anthracite Fields, and Cruel Sister alongside other programs that she will help to curate. In speaking to Carnegie Hall about her vision for the season, Ms. Wolfe notes, “I have this belief that if I have an incredible experience writing music or hearing a new piece of music, that anybody else, or many other people can share that experience. That is what art is about; it reflects this time and place, and who we are.” 

Anthracite Fields (2017)

SATB chorus, cl, egtr, perc, pno, vc, db
WP:26.04.2014, Philadelphia, PA

Score of Anthracite Fields

Performances 

Steel Hammer
03.03.2022 
Bang on a Can All-Stars, Rebecca L. Hargrove, Sonya Headlam, Molly Nette (vocals), Carnegie Hall

Cruel Sister & With a blue dress on
13.04.22
Ensemble Signal, Brad Lubman (cond.), Tessa Lark (violin), Carnegie Hall

Anthracite Fields
19.05.2022
Bang on a Can All-Stars, The Choir of Trinity Wall Street, Julian Wachner (cond.), Carnegie Hall