protect yourself from infection
music by David Lang
words from a 1918 U.S. government document,
with the names of Philadelphians who fell victim to the influenza of 1918
artwork by Steven Bradshaw
film by Brett A. Snodgrass
film conceived and conducted by Donald Nally
with musical assistance from Kevin Vondrak and John Grecia
recorded, compiled, and produced by Paul Vazquez, with Dante Portella
mixing and post production by Paul Vazquez/Digital Mission Audio Services
recorded July 9-12, 2019 at The High Point, St. Peter’s Church in the Great Valley, Malvern, Pennsylvania
artwork and film created the Week of April 19, 2020
from Spit Spreads Death: The Parade, created by Blast Theory and commissioned by the Mütter Museum of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia
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about
protect yourself from infection
The 1918-19 Spanish Influenza epidemic killed 50 to 100 million people worldwide. Philadelphia’s ill-fated Liberty Loan Parade, a patriotic wartime effort on September 28, 1918, went forward, despite warnings from medical experts; it caused Philadelphia to have the highest death rate of any major American city during the pandemic. Nearly 14,000 people died in six weeks, one death every five minutes; more than 17,500 died in six months.
The Mütter Museum’s
Spit Spreads Death
exhibition explores how neighborhoods in Philadelphia were impacted, how the disease spread, and what could happen in future pandemics. On September 28, 2019, facilitated by the internationally renowned artist group Blast Theory and local community health organizations, the Mütter Museum invited the Philadelphia community at large to participate in a parade to memorialize the Philadelphia victims of the influenza pandemic. Our recording of Lang’s
protect yourself from infection
premiered at the parade, where it could be heard through the mobile phones of hundreds of participants.
David Lang writes:
“I was asked to contribute some music to the Mütter Museum's exhibition in honor of the centennial year of an infamous parade that took place in Philadelphia during the great Spanish flu epidemic of 1918/1919. The parade was infamous because it was held in spite of the medical advice that people needed to isolate themselves, and because of this it became a major local vector for the spread of the disease. Completely coincidentally, I am named after a relative of blessed memory who died in that epidemic. Jews often name their children with the initials of relatives who have died—I am David Avery Lang, named after my father's cousin, Daniel Abraham Leibowitz. My Leibowitz ancestors had only fairly recently arrived in America from Lithuania. Young Daniel Abraham turned 18 and enlisted in the army, and was sent to boot camp in Georgia, where he got sick and died. He meant a lot to the family because he was living proof of the deep and real commitment of the new immigrants to the United States. His enlistment meant that they would belong here, and his death rattled them all so much that they were still mourning him when I was born, 38 years later.
For my piece, I wrote two kinds of music that coexist, separately. There is a kind of musical motto, sung by The Crossing and conducted by Donald Nally, which I made out of a health manual that the United States put out at the time of the epidemic, called 'Protect Yourself from Infection.' Over this motto, individual singers of The Crossing take turns singing solo melodies that I made out of both the individual names of Philadelphians who died from the epidemic and the individual names of Philadelphians who worked in healthcare during the epidemic, caring for the sick.”
Donald adds:
“When we recorded the raw materials of
protect yourself from infection
last summer, we could not have imagined these words would resonate in our lives; in fact, the words seemed somewhat innocent and naive. Today, they are our words, our lives; and we live, as our ancestors in Philadelphia of a century ago, at the hands of an irresponsible government – now on a national level. For us, this brings new weight to David’s composition and inspired us to assemble a team to create a kind of reincarnation of
protect yourself from infection.
Our sound designer produced a cohesive piece of music out of those raw materials (not originally intended to be a fluid work), our own tenor Steven Bradshaw made the artwork and titles, our long-time collaborator Brett Snodgrass created the film. Together, with the singing of our artists, these all add up to a marriage of sound and sight that we hope reaches the viewer with the same care with which it was recorded and created, having health care workers in our minds, friends and family in our hearts, and millions of neighbors we don’t know in our thoughts.”
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Protect yourself from infection
Keep well and don’t get hysterical
Avoid being sprayed by the nose and throat secretions of others
Beware of those who are coughing or sneezing
Avoid crowded streetcars
Walk to the office if possible
Keep out of crowds
Avoid theaters, moving picture shows and other places of public assembly
Do not travel by railroad unless absolutely necessary
Do not drink from glasses or cups which have been used by others
Unless you are sure they have been thoroughly cleansed
You can do much to lessen the danger to yourself
By keeping in good physical condition
Avoid close, stuffy and poorly ventilated rooms
Insist upon fresh air but avoid disagreeable drafts
Eat simple, nourishing food and drink plenty of water
Secure at least seven hours of sleep
Avoid physical fatigue
Do not sleep or sit around in damp clothing
Keep the feet dry
If you become ill don’t try to keep on with your work
Fight the disease rationally and do not become unduly alarmed
