go to the garden by Eris DeJarnett | Adam Warnke, trumpet
Spring 2025 CU Boulder Trumpet Studio Diverse Composer Project
go to the garden by Eris DeJarnett
Performed by Adam Warnke
Thanks to my wife, Lauren Warnke, for editing in the visuals for me!
Program notes:
Calm, quiet spaces can be effective and popular sites of introspection, reflection, and emotional processing, yet access to such spaces—plus the time and energy required to travel to them—remains elusive for many. The ongoing (at time of writing) COVID-19 pandemic keeps even more of us from calming spaces we previously could access while requiring an isolation and distance from others that feels anything but restful. Some of us have created new spaces for that vulnerability and processing, often online, but barriers to access still remain, and virtually everyone has been saddled with grief, anxiety, and burnout we are unable to fully process.
Rather than attempt a true-to-life reflection of this in go to the garden, I’ve crafted a narrator (voiced by the impeccable Tess Galbiati) who’s spent years upon years building a lush, overflowing space in their mind. The six- and nine-minute versions of the work examine what happens after that world experiences a deep, radical disturbance—it’s constructed metaphorically, but listeners and performers may find connections to trauma processing and recovery that map onto many life-altering events, not just a pandemic. Much as performers are encouraged to engage with the material at their own pace, I hope to leave space for audiences to grant themselves time to heal or rest no matter the specifics of their situations.
For the performer, I hope go to the garden serves as a reminder that doing what you can when you can in your performance journey is no less worthy of recognition than doing things “perfectly” (however you and the forces in your life define that) all the time.
If interested in learning more - https://erisdejarnett.com/product/go-to-the-garden-2022/
