Solastalgia: Violin

Name: Solastalgia: Violin
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 98-EP14746
Price: 12.95 USD
Availability: InStock

for Violin and Tape and optional Video

By Carola Bauckholt and Karin Hellqvist

Level: Intermediate

Item: 98-EP14746

$12.95

Shipped

One moment…

The term ‘solastalgia’ refers to the sense of loss and emotional distress we feel as environmental changes that we perceive as negative unfold before our eyes. It was coined in 2005 by Glenn Albrecht, professor of sustainability at Murdoch University in Western Australia. The man-made ecological collapse that has been lurking around the corner for a long time, is now no longer a future danger – it is here upon us. Recently, we have experienced floods, not only in tropical regions but in places like the German Ahr Valley, forest fires at unprecedented levels, not only in fire-prone areas like the California mountains, but globally, and drought in countries known for their rainfall such as the United Kingdom. Our yearly seasons are being denatured and we watch helplessly as species of insects and plant die out. We are more likely to change our behavior if we can move from general intellectual observation of these phenomena to personally experiencing the ecological disruption – with the attendant anger, fear and sadness.

During our collaborative process of creating Solastalgia in the pandemic, we have faced our eco-anxiety through the attempt to lend our voices to the struggling Arctic ice. By sending recordings of ice and violin back and forth online and examining them, Carola and Karin have together created a multi-layered mapping of the sounds of the polar regions. At the same time, Eric Lanz has studied and shaped the formation of salt crystals as an analogy to melting ice. We have immersed ourselves in the characteristics of the element of ice, inviting it to speak through our eyes and ears.

Solastalgia is developed in collaboration with Studio für Elektroakustische Musik der Akademie der Künste in Berlin (2021–2022) and Experimentalstudio des SWR in Freiburg. It is commissioned through the Swedish Arts Grants Committee as a part of Karin Hellqvist’s PhD in artistic research at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo.

Carola Bauckholt

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Series: Edition Peters

Publisher: Edition Peters

ISBN13: 979-0-577-02525-4

SKU: 98-EP14746

More about this title

About the Composer: Carola Bauckholt

Carola Bauckholt is a German composer whose work engages deeply with ecological and environmental themes. She has developed a distinctive compositional voice that draws connections between natural phenomena and musical structure, often collaborating with other artists and musicians to explore these concepts across media.

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Why we love this

This work transforms abstract environmental anxiety into visceral, personal musical experience. Rather than asking listeners to intellectualize climate change, Bauckholt and collaborator Karin Hellqvist invite violinists to inhabit the sounds of melting ice and polar collapse themselves, making the piece a powerful act of witness and empathy on the instrument.

What to expect

Solastalgia unfolds as a meditation on fragility and transformation. The violin becomes a voice for the voiceless, mapping sonic terrain that moves between crystalline clarity and dissolution, capturing both the terrible beauty of polar landscapes and the anguish of witnessing their destruction.

Who it's for

Intermediate violinists seeking repertoire with genuine artistic purpose and emotional depth. This work appeals to players who want to engage with contemporary compositional language and contribute to climate awareness through performance.

How to get the most out of it

Study the recorded ice sounds that inspired the composition before your first read-through; understanding the sonic source material will deepen your interpretation of the violin's textural possibilities.
Approach extended techniques (if present) not as technical exercises but as direct expressions of environmental distress and transformation; let the emotional weight guide your execution.
Examine the score's dynamic and timbral contrasts carefully to trace the arc of melting, collapse, and loss; these shifts carry the narrative weight of the piece.

How to use it

Program this alongside other contemporary works that address environmental or social themes to create a recital section centered on artistic activism. It also works powerfully as a standalone feature, especially in concert contexts focused on new music or interdisciplinary performance.