Subliminal History of New York State; Rosendale
From a participatory Shape Note (traditional 4 part harmony) singing performance with and by the audience, most new to this style of song. Together we sing Mortal Mortar Made
of Death about the matter of pneumatic cement (limestone) in and about the Widow Jane Mine, Rosendale NY. Performance written and directed by Carrie Dashow. Song text: C. Dashow, composition and earlier Shape Note singing instruction by Jesse Pearlman Karlsberg. Research assistance and location provided by the Century House Historical Society. July 2006
As tiny creatures dropped their lives,
Sang sinking to the bottom sand,
Beneath a salty water den
To coalesce again again.
Bones wedged together cast with time,
A mortal mortar made of death,
Into the ceiling we can see
Millenniums of zoology.
As if the day has never changed,
Clay bodies broken bridges made;
Bright by the light of lime we see
Two hundred years' humanity
More about the project:
nysun.com/arts/digging-below-flying-above/38580/
and subliminalstate.org
Shape Note Singing:
subliminalstate.org/site/subliminal-history-of-new-york-state/shape-note-singing-schools/
and
fasola.org/
