Little Poisonous Snakes (Landay)

Little Poisonous Snakes for soprano, piano, oboe and cello by Freya Waley-Cohen.

Composed in 2019.

Programme Notes

The texts are translations of Landays, an ancient form of Pashto verse, which consist of two lines, the first of 9 syllables, the second of 13. Landays are almost exclusively created by Afghan women, who can use Landay to express themselves in ways that are prohibited by their society. Landay are an aural tradition, here translated by Eliza Griswold in collaboration with Asma Safi. The direct translation of Landay is little poisonous snakes.

• Freya Waley-Cohen

Duration: 7 minutes