Voices of Eve

Voices of Eve is written in honor of the Women's Suffrage Movement, and the passage of the 19th Amendment.  I believe firmly in the value of all people, but our history as a species is marked by a drive toward hierarchy--placing the value of certain people ahead of certain others, particularly women.  The piece reflects the inherent validity of women's voices and the constitutional amendment that acknowledges this.  The opening of the piece is calm--a quiet but insistent voice representing the value of women's minds and ideas.  This idea takes off with bright and sunny melodies in the trumpet and winds--vibrant, and full of optimism.  But no idea lives without resistance.  The suffragists were met with unimaginable backlash for holding the simple idea that a woman's voice was valid--that her ideas could be valuable to the larger fabric of society.  Ultimately, their story is one of triumph--the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote and therefore the right to have a fair say in the governance of their lives, was ratified in 1920.  While the battle to win equal space in the hearts and minds of all individuals continues, the nature of the validity of all of us continues as a quiet, steady voice, ready for any who will listen.

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Duration: 6 min.