On this week’s episode of Out and About, Mae Gilliland of ArtsPartners of Central Illinois talks with Cory Boulton, Coordinator of Music Education and Director of Choral Activities at Bradley University, about The Lost Birds, an upcoming performance by the Gratus Choral Ensemble.
Presented July 26 at First Federated Church, The Lost Birds is a 12-movement choral work by Grammy-nominated composer Christopher Tin that reflects on bird extinctions while exploring broader themes of loss, hope and humanity’s relationship with the natural world. Drawing from poetry by Emily Dickinson, Christina Rossetti, Sara Teasdale and Edna St. Vincent Millay, the piece traces an emotional journey from the abundance of the passenger pigeon to its extinction.
Dr. Boulton says the work ultimately asks audiences to reflect on what is lost when nature disappears. “It’s really about the extinction of birds, but sort of a larger meditation on the extinction of nature and beauty and abundance... and all of the things that are most important to us that we don’t realize are until they’re gone,” he said.
The concert also includes a pre-performance lecture featuring representatives from the Sierra Club and Audubon Society, followed by a post-concert reception where audience members can continue the conversation with performers and community organizations.
The Lost Birds will be performed Sunday, July 26, at 4 p.m. at First Federated Church in Peoria. A pre-concert lecture begins at 3:30 p.m. Admission is free.
