An all-star cast of Island musicians will present the world premiere of Hard Times Come Again on Sunday, September 18, at 7:00 pm at The Guild. Featuring UPEI faculty members Morgan Saulnier, Sean Kemp, and Natalie Williams Calhoun, the Hard Times Orchestra also includes Cameron MacDuffee, Brielle Ansems, Adam Hill, Jeffrey Bazett-Jones, Chris Corrigan, and Nick Doneff. Tickets are available at The Guild’s box office (902-620-3333) and at the corner of Richmond and Queen Streets) or online (www.theguildpei.com).

Composed by Adam Hill, Hard Times Come Again is a concert-length chamber-folk suite that draws on oral history and connects the Great Depression to contemporary times through stories of hope and transformation. The piece is made up of seven songs with  lyrics derived from historical interviews about the Great Depression. The interviewees represent a diverse demographic, young and old, from farmers and salespeople to artists and politicians. Complementing these songs are seven electroacoustic interludes that tell contemporary tales. Hill conducted his own set of interviews with Island artists and combined samples from those conversations with organic and synthetic sounds. The result is an emotionally evocative musical experience that sheds light on what we value and how we lead our lives in accordance with those values. 

Tickets are available at www.theguildpei.com.