The Lost Birds

Christopher Tin’s “The Lost Birds” is a large-scale chorale work that the composer describes as “a musical memorial to bird species driven to extinction by humankind.” But it’s not simply about birds. It’s a poignant work that employs what the composer calls “soft activism,” serving as a musical warning of humanity’s future.

Drawing on the writing of 19th-century poets Emily Dickinson, Christina Rossetti, Edna St. Vincent Millay and Sara Teasdale, the music explores themes of hope, peace and renewal, but also mourns the absence of the loss of these bird species. Yet Tin looks to other sources of inspiration that is contemporaneous of these poets, including the Romantic-era music of their time and the idea of documenting bird song that emerged just over 100 years ago. We’ll hear a performance of this work with The Phoenix Chorale from March 2024 at the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts.

About Christopher Tin

Christopher Tin is a two-time Grammy-winning composer of concert music, film and video game scores. His music has been described as “rousing, anthemic” (“Time”) and “joyful” (“The Guardian”). His song “Baba Yetu,” originally written for the video game “Civilization IV,” holds the distinction of being the first piece of music written for a video game ever to win a Grammy Award. With the help of his passionate global fan base, his fourth album, “The Lost Birds,” broke all classical music crowdfunding records, raising over $225,000. Tin is signed to an exclusive record deal with Universal under their legendary Decca label and published by Concord’s Boosey & Hawkes.