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For Soprano, Bb Clarinet, Violin, and Piano
Duration: 2'40"
I am currently in the process of preparing for a July 2025 recital with my vocalist friends Annelise Ellars, Chris Ellars, and Alex Nick. When discussing repertoire, we hit upon common themes of transformation, women, and snakes - uniting the Biblical tale of Eve, Japanese Noh theatre, and the Greek myth of Medusa. I found a poem by Elizabeth Hadley associated with an exhibition she put on at Dartmouth's Rauner Special Collections Library in spring 2024.
The author writes:
"The following poem, from my thesis on Ovid's Metamorphoses and the inspiration for the exhibition, explores Medusa's perspective, looking back on her life when she was a maiden. in the Ovid's Metamorphoses, Minerva punishes Medusa by turning her into a monster because Neptune raped her in Minerva's temple. The title, alternis inmixti crinibus angues (Snakes Mixed-In with Coiling Hair), comes from line 792 of Book 4 of Ovid's Metamorphoses."