Stephen Hartke
O Genus Infelix Humanum
O GENUS INFELIX HUMANUM (2020)
for Solo Piano
Commissioned by and dedicated to Min Kwon
Duration: 3½ Minutes
Commissioned by pianist Min Kwon as part of a project involving dozens of American
composers, O Genus Infelix Humanum is a variation on America the Beautiful, and hence a
reflection on these unsettled and unsettling times. The title comes from Lucretius and
translates as “O hapless human race,” the beginning of a disquisition on human
credulity. My treatment of the melody involves stripping it of its original rhythm and
inverting the notes. A fragment of the original is also heard, but with the new rhythm I
have given the inversion. In the peroration the melody is presented in retrograde
inversion.
YouTube Video:
Min Kown, piano
Interview and performance
starting at 32:26