Weather Makers SATB
A rhythmic, chant-based song calling for action on climate change. Scored for intermediate, mixed, unaccompanied voices.
Words and music by Kirsten Duncan.
Price is for a single printable PDF of the complete sheet music score marked FOR PERUSAL ONLY (no copies or distribution permitted). Download after checkout or from email.
TO PURCHASE A LICENCE FOR MULTIPLE COPIES, add the number of copies during checkout to request an invoice.
A rhythmic, chant-based song calling for action on climate change. Scored for intermediate, mixed, unaccompanied voices.
Words and music by Kirsten Duncan.
Price is for a single printable PDF of the complete sheet music score marked FOR PERUSAL ONLY (no copies or distribution permitted). Download after checkout or from email.
TO PURCHASE A LICENCE FOR MULTIPLE COPIES, add the number of copies during checkout to request an invoice.
A rhythmic, chant-based song calling for action on climate change. Scored for intermediate, mixed, unaccompanied voices.
Words and music by Kirsten Duncan.
Price is for a single printable PDF of the complete sheet music score marked FOR PERUSAL ONLY (no copies or distribution permitted). Download after checkout or from email.
TO PURCHASE A LICENCE FOR MULTIPLE COPIES, add the number of copies during checkout to request an invoice.
Voicing: SATB divisi, a cappella
Item: 2023.03
ISMN: 9790900969927
Duration: 4:45 min
PDF file: 12 pages to print at size A4, includes front cover, information about the work and composer, music pages, back cover
Composer’s note
‘Weather Makers’ is unabashedly an activist work calling for climate action. The refrain quotes the titles of two of Tim Flannery’s books, ‘We are the weather makers’ written in 2005 and the 10-year follow‑up ‘Atmosphere of hope’. I felt it was important in this narrative to acknowledge the substantial contribution of fossil fuels to modern civilisation, and then move past it because we now have the technology to replace all of those products. The lyrics also give a nod to action network GetUp!, and to science fiction writer Kim Stanley Robinson’s book set in 2312 that refers to our period of history, appropriately if depressingly, as ‘the dithering’.
Musically, the rhythmic chant takes inspiration from Karl Jenkins’ ‘Healing light’ and Frode Fjelheim’s ‘Eatnemen vuelie’ (popularised as the opening music for Disney’s 2013 film ‘Frozen’). The piece should be sung with warrior-like intensity and a strong, driving beat, softening a little for the final section that modulates into a more optimistic major key to call for action to protect our planet.
I offer to waive the purchase price for choirs performing this piece to raise funds for climate action. Tell us about your fundraising plans in the checkout form as you purchase a perusal PDF.
Performances
2016 A Chorus of Women, directed by Johanna McBride, ‘Mission Climate!’ concert to raise funds for the Climate Council of Australia, at the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture, Barton, ACT
2024 The Resonants, directed by Helen Swan, ‘Sounds of Nature’ concert, at Weston Creek Uniting Church, Weston, ACT
2025 The Resonants, directed by Helen Swan, ‘RiverSong’ concert to raise funds for the Australian River Restoration Centre, at the National Museum of Australia, Acton, ACT
Reviews
From the Australian River Restoration Centre, regarding the 2025 ‘RiverSong’ concert:
“What followed was one of the most powerful moments of the night: Kirsten Duncan’s The Weather Makers, a choral reflection on human impact. As visuals of fossil fuels burning, bushfires roaring, and dry creek beds filled the screen, the music swelled not just through the speakers, but in the chest. It started with sadness, but something shifted. As the music reached a crescendo, you could feel the collective resolve in the room to take action and save ourselves, each other, our rivers and our planet. And that was the heart of the night: feeling. ”