Mother Everest was my first commission by Tapestry, supported by the Ontario Arts Council, and written in 2004 in collaboration with librettist Marjorie Chan. The work is a 17-minute journey into another world in which a hallucination takes over from reality. This short chamber opera is scored for mezzo and baritone voices, clarinet, violin, cello, percussion, and piano. The story follows two characters on their ascent of Everest: an ambitious woman and her paid guide from Nepal. As the story unfolds, we discover her rather self-centered personality with arrogant, bold music to match. Pasang, the Sherpa, speaks slowly and sometimes chants lines in prayer, often with an eastern inspired modal inflection. In true operatic fashion, the two are revealed to be lovers. My favourite musical section is when she joins him in prayer, singing melodically overtop of his chant to a soft and gentle pentatonic instrumental background. The music ranges from lyrical to contemporary as reality is stripped away.

- Abigail Richardson-Schulte