About this Piece

The Water Dreams of Animals is a new, LA-Phil commissioned opera and installation work by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, percussionist and sound artist Susie Ibarra with libretto by Jeffrey Yang. The concert score is inspired by Ibarra's CHAN series of meditative sound studies on historical waters and our connections to the ancient and present-day life inside these waterways, from the convergence of the Green and Yampa Rivers through the canyons and deserts to the Gulf of California. The concert-version of The Water Dreams of Animals will receive its world premiere on the May 25, 2027 LA Phil Green Umbrella concert performed by Talking Gong (percussionist Susie Ibarra, keyboardist Alex Peh, and flutist Claire Chase), HEX vocal ensemble, and the LA Phil New Music Group conducted by Vimbayi Kaziboni.