Picture yourself in a hospital. The reading of surgical records or vital signs monitors may not be the most pleasing to the ears, but with a little musical context, even those can bring forward feelings of hope, resilience, and joy. Hi there – I’m Loki Karuna, and on this edition of Noteworthy I’d like to share the healing power of the music of composer Molly Joyce.
Molly Joyce is a composer who’s dedicated much of her career and musical output to raising awareness around issues of accessibility and disability. When she was 7 years old, a car accident severely damaged her left hand, and this experience has inspired many works over the years, including this one, which uses surgical records as lyrics, and pressure sensors, uniquely formed for her left hand, to create this ethereal music from an album called State Change.
Other works by Molly Joyce include sets of musical interviews, featuring people with disabilities, in addition to music for TV and film. She’s a composer who’s beautifully fused marginalized lived experiences with the universality of sound, making her one of today’s most Noteworthy artists.
Noteworthy is a production of WDAV classical public radio.
Pictured: Molly Joyce photo by Shervin Lainez.