Making its world premiere this month, Wormsley’s collaborative work will translate audience-submitted dreams into a live score.
The American Composers Orchestra will premiere Cosmologyscape at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall on March 11. Co-created by Professor Alisha B Wormsley and Kite, the work is a centerpiece of ACO’s “Hello, America” program, part of the season-wide United in Sound: America at 250 festival.
During the performance, audience-submitted dreams are processed through a custom score-generating engine, which translates them into symbolic parameters. These parameters then unfold as a live dream score performed by the orchestra under conductor Carolyn Kuan, alongside the Cosmologyscape Ensemble featuring Kite on violin and guest musicians JJJJJerome Ellis, Marilu Donovan, and Nava Dunkelman.
The project draws from Black and Indigenous dreaming techniques as enduring systems of knowledge and creation that have survived slavery and genocide. These practices hold methods for memory, survival, and world-making across generations. Beyond the music, the engine also generates suggested medicinal teas based on the dream inputs, creating a collective, holistic dreaming space.
The public is invited to participate in the world premiere by submitting their dreams to the Cosmologyscape engine. Dreams submitted via the portal will be directly translated into the music performed on the Carnegie Hall stage.
Submit your dream here.