A new piece, “Somewhere Bluebirds Fly," by local Colorado Springs composer Erin Spencer, was written in memory of the victims of the 2022 Club Q shooting. It’s one of four works on the weekend program for the Chamber Orchestra of the Springs’ concerts titled “The Human Equation: Uncovering Silent Battles Through Sound” at the Ent Center for the Arts.
“Somewhere Bluebirds Fly" was inspired by the classic song “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” and uses that melody as a starting point. Spencer writes in the program notes that bluebirds are often symbols of hope and joy, along with a connection between the living and the dead.
The title, she wrote, is meant to “suggest a place where hope can still be found if we look closely, even in the midst of grief.”
Spencer used specific musical notes to represent each of the people who died in the shooting. The opening melody is composed from those notes.
As written in the program, the piece moves through emotions like anguish in an effort to match the community’s experiences. Spencer then omits the notes representing the victims to convey loss and reverses the melody of "Somewhere over the Rainbow" to say “that even in a world that feels backwards, we can still find hope.”
At the end, the notes representing the victims return and are the last thing heard as a reminder to keep their memories alive.
The orchestra's executive director, Jacob Pope, said concertgoers don’t have to have a personal connection to the Club Q tragedy in order to feel moved by the music.
“You still can just appreciate the beauty of it and be brought into a better understanding, perhaps of what those individuals or what that community is going through,” he said
Three other pieces fill out the program, including “Concerto for Electric Cello” by Colorado composer Dylan Fixmer, “Symphony No. 2 in B-flat major" by Franz Schubert and “My Name is Amanda Todd,” by Canadian composer Jocelyn Morlock. Pope said they selected the music to speak to the resilience and vulnerability of the human heart.
“For this concert, we wanted to say that music has this very unique power to transform pain and tragedy into beauty and hope,” said the orchestra's executive director, Jacob Pope. “There's something very beautiful about that transformation.”
An exhibit called “Be Mindful, it Matters” will be presented by Centennial Area Health Education Center during the concerts at the Ent Center for the Arts – along with other mental health resources.
