KUOW Presents

Mina Miller is a Seattle pianist who founded the organization Music of Remembrance 15 years ago. Her passion for the organization springs in part from her family history. Mina comes from a Holocaust family.My parents were the only survivors in their entire families. They managed to emigrate to America just in time. They came in 1939, around the time of the World’s Fair. They came from Lithuania. But their entire families were murdered. To this day I still have a problem identifying when people talk about their relatives — when they talk about this aunt, this uncle, this cousin. I am like a 3-year-old having to figure this out. I didn’t know any family except that they were all dead. They were all murdered.The organization that Mina founded in 1998 commemorates the Holocaust by producing live performances and recordings of works by artists like composer Viktor Ullman. He wrote his 1943 opera “The Emperor of Atlantis” while imprisoned in the Terezin Concentration Camp. Ullman’s darkly satirical opera is aimed directly at Hitler and the Nazi dictator’s mistress Eva Braun. The opera was originally intended to be performed at Terezin, a camp in which Nazi captors, for propaganda purposes, encouraged the creativity of the incarcerated artists and musicians. But the subject matter of Ullman’s opera proved too subversive for the time and circumstances. Shortly after he completed “The Emperor of Atlantis,” Ullman was transported to Auschwitz and executed in the gas chambers. His opera wasn't performed until 1975.Mina Miller says her work with Music of Remembrance is always driven by inspiration drawn from stories of artists and the Holocaust:As a musician I always felt that music should serve a higher purpose, not just serve as entertainment. It should convey a message. It should communicate something that gets at the essence of who we are. When I researched the Holocaust and I came to know the kind of performances that were taking place in Terezin, I understood that there was a profound human spirit there. These artists, knowing that they were going to die, created music up to the very last moment! I felt with Music of Remembrance there could be a vehicle to present this music. And we build new bridges and bring music to new generations by commissioning new music that reflects on the Holocaust and tells new stories that need to be heard.Seattle Symphony conductor Ludovic Morlot and 13 members of the orchestra will accompany the singers in performances of “The Emperor of Atlantis” this weekend in Benaroya Hall. These concerts, marking the beginning of the 15th season of Music of Remembrance are Friday, November 16 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, November 18 at 6:00 p.m.

Mina Miller is a Seattle pianist who founded the organization Music of Remembrance 15 years ago. Her passion for the organization springs in part from her family history. Mina comes from a Holocaust family.My parents were the only survivors in their entire families. They managed to emigrate to America just in time. They came in 1939, around the time of the World’s Fair. They came from Lithuania. But their entire families were murdered. To this day I still have a problem identifying when people talk about their relatives — when they talk about this aunt, this uncle, this cousin. I am like a 3-year-old having to figure this out. I didn’t know any family except that they were all dead. They were all murdered.The organization that Mina founded in 1998 commemorates the Holocaust by producing live performances and recordings of works by artists like composer Viktor Ullman. He wrote his 1943 opera “The Emperor of Atlantis” while imprisoned in the Terezin Concentration Camp. Ullman’s darkly satirical opera is aimed directly at Hitler and the Nazi dictator’s mistress Eva Braun.The opera was originally intended to be performed at Terezin, a camp in which Nazi captors, for propaganda purposes, encouraged the creativity of the incarcerated artists and musicians. But the subject matter of Ullman’s opera proved too subversive for the time and circumstances.Shortly after he completed “The Emperor of Atlantis,” Ullman was transported to Auschwitz and executed in the gas chambers. His opera wasn't performed until 1975.Mina Miller says her work with Music of Remembrance is always driven by inspiration drawn from stories of artists and the Holocaust:As a musician I always felt that music should serve a higher purpose, not just serve as entertainment. It should convey a message. It should communicate something that gets at the essence of who we are. When I researched the Holocaust and I came to know the kind of performances that were taking place in Terezin, I understood that there was a profound human spirit there. These artists, knowing that they were going to die, created music up to the very last moment! I felt with Music of Remembrance there could be a vehicle to present this music. And we build new bridges and bring music to new generations by commissioning new music that reflects on the Holocaust and tells new stories that need to be heard.Seattle Symphony conductor Ludovic Morlot and 13 members of the orchestra will accompany the singers in performances of “The Emperor of Atlantis” this weekend in Benaroya Hall. These concerts, marking the beginning of the 15th season of Music of Remembrance are Friday, November 16 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, November 18 at 6:00 p.m.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Many Pacific Northwest artists feel compelled to respond to the drama of the salmon fighting their way upstream to spawn. In "Finding the Poem," Port Angeles poet Alice Derry sees in the salmon's efforts a parallel with the way we learn to accommodate each other in a long marriage — and how often it is loss that teaches us, finally, how to do it."Finding the Poem" is part of Derry's fourth collection of poetry, "Tremolo" (Red Hen Press, 2012).Her third collection, "Strangers to Their Courage" (Louisiana State University Press, 2001), was a finalist for the 2002 Washington Book Award. "Stages of Twilight" (Breitenbush, 1986), was chosen by Raymond Carver for the King County Publication Award. Derry recently retired from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, where she co-directed the Foothills Writers’ Series since 1980.

Why do we make art? and Is it worth the personal cost? are two of the central questions in Christine Deavel's poetry collection "Woodnote" (Bear Star Press, 2011). Deavel is the co-owner of a poetry-only bookstore in Seattle's Wallingford neighborhood, and a graduate of the prestigious Iowa Writers Workshop. "Woodnote" has even won the Washington State Book award for poetry. But even so, Deavel describes herself as someone who is almost constantly in crisis about why she, or anyone, writes. KUOW's Elizabeth Austen spoke with Christine Deavel about that ambivalence and how it plays out in her work. In her poem "Economy," Deavel interleaves excerpts from a relative's early 20th century diaries — brief daily entries made faithfully for 54 years — with her own obsessive questioning about how to value the art she makes. Deavel talks about what drew her to the diaries as source material, and why, after devoting her life to poetry, she still questions why she does it. Pianist Robin Holcomb improvises while Deavel reads an excerpt from "Economy," recorded at the Good Shepherd Center in October 2011. About Christine Deavel And "Woodnote" Deavel is co-owner of Open Books: a Poem Emporium, one of just three poetry-only bookstores in the United States. She is the author of the poetry chapbook "Box of Little Spruce" (LitRag Press, 2005) and the collection "Woodnote," which won the 2012 Washington State Book Award for poetry and the 2011 Dorothy Brunsman Poetry Prize. She graduated from Indiana University and the University of Iowa, and currently lives in Seattle.

When Ellen Forney was diagnosed with bipolar disorder 16 years ago, her first concern was for her creative future. The award-winning cartoonist prided herself on the artwork and stories she'd come up with during periods she described as manic. Right after her diagnosis, Forney was reluctant to try the drug treatments her psychiatrist prescribed for her. Would she lose her creative edge on lithium? But after a serious period of depression, Forney set out on the ongoing journey to achieve and maintain a state of mental balance.Ellen Forney chronicles her experiences in her new graphic memoir "Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo, and Me." Forney describes it as the hardest work she's ever done. She hopes people struggling with their own mental balance will read her story and draw inspiration from it.