"They Are All Gone" (2023) composed by Hannah Wolkowitz

Who knew a teeny-tiny fuzz-ball could kill millions of people? The fuzz ball put the world on hold. It put everyone in quarantine and zoomed its way from person to person. Such an eerie feeling it was to drive on empty highway streets, stand at least 6 feet away, and be limited to one person per family in a grocery store.
"They Are All Gone" tells the story of COVID. The piece starts with a kick drum solo, mimicking a steady heartbeat, and leads into a flowing, eerie stage of warning. The heartbeat quickens into worry. Quickly, the concern escalates into full-blown panic, with a recurring COVID, or “monster” motif, screaming through the chaos. The whirlwind dies down into a heartbeat, slower than before, which spills into a section of mourning, still attached to the monster motif. As the haunting melodies of the saxophone and cello seamlessly intertwine and gradually fade away, all that remains is the slowing of the heartbeat. The piece ends with the soft ring of the chime.
Although life has regained most of its normality, COVID's effects on each of us will never leave. Remembering the grief the entire world felt as millions passed away from this virus is vital. Without the loss of life, we cannot fully understand how blessed we are to have a life to live.
This piece is dedicated to all who have died from COVID, families of those who have died from COVID, and the rest of us, who have experienced it.

I originally wrote "They Are All Gone" during the 2023 spring session of Indiana University Jacobs Composition Academy. Since then, I have greatly revised the piece, specifically amongst the percussion part. This piece was originally a trio with the percussionist playing both marimba and kick drum. Now it is a quartet with the kick drum player also playing the chimes at the end of the piece.

HUGE thanks to Mizzou for hosting the Creating Original Music Project Competition and to the following students who worked so hard to help put my composition together!

Andrea Lee, saxophone
Miles Bohlman, kick drum and chimes
Olivia Sletteland, marimba
Dean Wibe, cello