September 11th Memorial Concert
Opening Remarks: George Wolfe, Director, CPCS
Good evening,
The Sept. 11th tragedy a year ago today has stirred within everyone conflicting emotions as we deal with this event and understand what was and still remains unexplainable. In remembering we may initially be struck with shock and disbelief. But we are soon overwhelmed by grief as we try to comprehend the immeasurable loss of human life.
We experience also anger and defiance, determined not to allow terrorists to interfere with our exercise of freedom. We find heroism and patriotism in our loss, but also fear, as we are reminded of our mortality and vulnerability. Now, a year later, we take time to reflect, reflect on what we as Americans may have done or not done, to invoke such extreme hatred as to have motivated human beings to commit such a horrendous act. I think you will find the music on this evening's concert speaks to the entire range of emotions in ways that are both inspiring and consoling.
Last May I visited Manhattan to perform with a New York based chamber ensemble at St. Thomas Moore Church in Darian Connecticut. In front of the podium there was a table on which had been placed several photographs, candles and vases of flowers. It was a memorial to those in the parish who died in the terrorist attacks.
The day prior to the concert, I visited ground zero and was stunned at the countless memorials hung on the iron fence that surrounded the church adjacent to what was the World Trade Center. I was also moved by the silence people observed as they strolled past the site, a silence that was heard above the traffic of the busy streets nearby. There was no doubt that this ground had become a sacred shrine, a place not of commerce but of reverence, the presence of which deeply probed the heart and mind.
I took photos of ground zero that evening and wish now to close my remarks, offering them as a visual prayer. For these images are a far more potent expression of the meaning of this day than anything I could say in words.