Kohelet

Kohelet (2024) for clarinet, cello, piano, and electronics by Raphael Radna Kohelet is a book in the Ketuvim (“Writings”) section of the Hebrew Bible. In this text, the mysterious Kohelet ruminates on the paradoxical search for meaning in a life that we know must end. Havel havalim, hakol havel—Kohelet’s insistent refrain: “Everything is vapor!” There are many ways we might respond when faced with our own transience. We can become agitated or indignant; we can become afraid; we can despair, become despondent; we can succumb to denial and struggle against our fate; or we can submit to our apparent meaninglessness and perhaps find liberation therein. “To everything, there is a season,” teaches immortal Kohelet; all of these moods—and perhaps others—are reflected in this work. The Callithumpian Consort: Amy Advocat, clarinet Stephen Marotto, cello Joey Vasconi, piano Stephen Drury, conductor International Computer Music Conference (ICMC 2025). The Plimpton Shattuck Black Box Theatre, New England Conservatory, Boston, MA, June 9, 2025. With gratitude to the exceptional performers and dedicated conference organizers who made this performance possible.