Chris Cerrone: Beaufort Scales

Beaufort Scales

music by Christopher Ceronne
visuals by Hannah Wasileski
lighting by Yuki Nakase Link

2024 GRAMMY® nominee for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble 

Inspired by a poetic table of wind measurements from the 19th century, Beaufort Scales traces a trajectory from placidity (“Sea like a mirror / Smoke rises vertically”) to calamity. The original scale—12 steps, two hundred words—is the scaffolding for an exploration of changing weather phenomenon in our modern era. Cerrone treats Beaufort’s original text as a moire—he interweaves texts from authors throughout history—Melville, Teju Cole, Anne Carson—to create a kaleidoscopic view of weather, all headed towards an inexorable climax: “The air is filled with foam and spray / Devastation.” Beaufort Scales is a cautionary tale in the era of climate change.

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