Celebrating the 2021 Creative Reactions Contest Winners

About the Playlist

April 29, 2021

Since 2015, Princeton University Concerts has offered all Princeton University students a way to harness their creative talents in engaging with music through the Creative Reactions Contest, an annual contest, alternating each academic year between creative writing and visual arts formats. The 2020-2021 contest, limited to writing entries only, asked participants to respond to the prompt: “What has music meant to you during the COVID-19 pandemic?” Students were encouraged to use a specific musical work as a point of reference. Listen to the music inspiring their writing in our latest Collective Listening Project playlist and read their winning entries.

CASSANDRA JAMES
First Place Co-winner

DAVE MALLOY “Dust and Ashes” from Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812
Josh Groban, singer
KEREM OKTAR
First Place Co-winner

THE CARETAKER (Leyland James Kirby) “It’s just a burning memory” from Everywhere at the end of time
Listen to this on Bandcamp>
EMILY MESEV
Second Place Winner

ANNABELLE CHVOSTEK “Apocalypse Lullaby”
The Wailin’ Jennys

FRANZ LISZT Etude No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor “La campanella” from Grandes études de Paganini, S. 141
Daniil Trifonov, piano

KIRK HAMMETT, JAMES HETFIELD, LARS ULRICH “Enter Sandman”
Metallica
MAYA KEREN
Honorable Mention

VAL JEANTY, ROMARNA CAMPBELL Drum Melody
Listen to this on YouTube>

MAYA KEREN, CAROLINE DAVIS “Among us is misery enough”
Listen to this on YouTube>

ADRIANNE LENKER “ingydar”
Adrianne Lenker

HALEY HEYNDERICKX “No Face”
Haley Heynderickx

ERYKAH BADU, SHAUN MARTIN, EUGENE YOUNG, BRAYLON LACY “Orange Moon”
Erykah Badu

LIANNE LA HAVAS, MATTHEW HALES, DIFOSCO ERVIN, JR., ISAAC HAYES, RUDY LOVE “Bittersweet”
Lianne La Havas

MAYA KEREN “Wyndmoor”
Camila Nebbia, Diana Arias, Lesley Mok, Maya Keren
ALEXANDER KIM
Honorable Mention

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH Goldberg Variations, BWV 988
Glenn Gould, piano

ANTHONY TIFFITH, GREG KURSTIN, KENDRICK LAMAR, MARK SPEARS, ZACARI PACALDO “LOVE. FEAT. ZACARI.”
Kendrick Lamar, Zacari

HARRY AKST, JOE YOUNG, SAM LEWIS “Dinah (Take 2)”
Thelonious Monk

ALBANY “BARNEY” BIGARD, DUKE ELLINGTON, IRVING MILLS “Mood Indigo”
Duke Ellington

PHILIP GLASS Osamu’s Theme: Kyoko’s House
Kronos Quartet

CHARLIE PARKER Ko-Ko
Charlie Parker

ELIZABETH FRASER, ROBIN GUTHRIE, SIMON RAYMONDE “Heaven or Las Vegas”
Cocteau Twins

OLIVIER MESSIAEN Apparition de l’église éternelle
Olivier Latry, organ

HUNTER HUNT-HENDRIX, OLIVIER MESSIAEN Apparition of the Eternal Church
Liturgy

JOHN ADAMS The Dharma at Big Sur
Tracy Silverman, electric violin with the BBC Symphony Orchestra

GEORGES DELERUE Thême de Camille from Le Mépris

JOHN ZORN “Contempt” from Naked City (after Georges Delerue’s Thême de Camille)
Listen to this on YouTube>
KONSTANTINOS KONSTANTINOU
Honorable Mention

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH Fugue in G Minor, BWV 578
Ton Koopman, organ