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The water noticed me
as soon as I stepped in.
It parted around me;
it welcomed me with sound
as it lapped against me.
As soon as I entered the river,
I could see how
my presence mattered,
how what I chose to do
changed the flow of things.
Mary Elizabeth,
Vermont composer from Water Music
|
 Water Music
by Deborah Alden
Photos by University of Michigan Press
Created as a celebration of water, this collection is a tangible tribute to
the element that has inspired, touched, and shaped Ryerson’s life. Water
Music will spark concerts, lectures, educational series, showings, and celebrations
for years to come. The proceeds from the book will go to the Water Music Fund
of the United Nations Foundation. This fund is intended to protect and preserve
water for peoples throughout the world. As Ryerson says, it’s a way for
her to give back to the element that has given her so much throughout her life.
The Language of Water
Ryerson’s work celebrates water, giving it voice through the words and
music of composers. "I knew that I wanted to honor water," Ryerson
says, "to give back to water, but without all of this terrible hand wringing"
that characterizes most environmental missions today. "This is a project
of personal passion," Ryerson explains. "I knew that what would be
most true to who I am would be to have the heroes of my life, the musicians,"
do the writing. Ryerson set out, letter by letter, phone call by phone call,
to enlist musicians from all over the world to tell their stories of water,
of its power, nature, laughter, and music as it has touched their lives.
 From
the Heart of Vermont
The cover of the book is an image of the Green River Reservoir in Morrisville,
Vermont. The photographer is a tenured faculty member at Castleton State College.
Water Music is born of Vermont. This book even owes a debt of gratitude to Castleton
State College, which nurtured and supported Ryerson, recommending her as a Vermont
State Colleges Faculty Fellow, giving her a one-year sabbatical to dedicate
herself wholly to Water Music. "I am unbelievably indebted to Castleton
to have had a sabbatical," Ryerson says. "I woke up every day of that
year in bliss," she says, just because she could work on the project.
True and Pure
Ryerson’s many photographs are true and clear, faithful images of water
as we find it in nature. "I don’t ever use filters," Ryerson
says of her art. "I don’t even jimmy it. These are the colors as
they appear in water."
One World One Water
"The feel of the book always from the beginning was for it to be global,"
Ryerson says. Knowing that water is treasured everywhere, the editors decided
to allow the photos to speak for themselves, without tags or identifiers, as
symbols of the water that flows around the globe, in all of its many facets
and faces.
A
Power of Its Own
"There is a synchronicity that has bathed this project," Ryerson
says of the moments that have come together to make her mission a reality. "It
has had that kind of thing, like synchronistic miracles that happened over and
over." Whether it was meeting a musician through a friend, being named
Fellow for a sabbatical year just before deadline, or finding that Carol Maillard
and Sweet Honey in the Rock would play the Flynn Theater just as her showing
there was to open, marvelous, magical synchronicities have defined this project
for Ryerson. The culmination of these miracles was the book itself.
 Within
and Beyond Itself
"This whole project has been a very intuitive project of my heart,"
Ryerson says. "I just knew when it felt right and when it didn’t."
These instincts have led Ryerson to follow the life of the project as it swelled
to become the global phenomenon that has earned Ryerson the Paul Keough Award
for Leadership in the Environment from the Water Environment Federation, an
award she will accept on January 28. Benefits are currently being planned for
Chicago, Washington, Nashville, South Korea, and South Africa. All along the
way new art will spring from the source, each in turn generating joy, respect,
and proceeds to help protect water throughout the world.
Sweet Sacrifices
"I feel so fortunate to have found this path. I felt at many moments that
it wasn’t even my project, but that I was steering the ship and the water
was leading it," Ryerson says of the years she spent "orchestrating"
Water Music. The project was funded solely by Ryerson, without grants, foundation
awards, or publisher’s advances. "I sacrificed everything,"
she says, including her jazz saxophone, her classical piano, her gardening,
and even her exercize as the publication date drew nearer. "I had to do
it," she says of her portrayal. "Failure wasn’t an option."
This from a woman who still wears her Vermont Woman tee shirt (from Vermont
Woman the First) whenever she travels out of state.
Ryerson estimates that she spent more than $30,000 to get this project produced,
but it was clearly worth the personal sacrifice. "Other people take vacations,"
Ryerson laughs. "I did this book."
 What’s
Next
Ryerson predicts another ten years of concerts, lectures, benefits, and educational
programs to stem from the initial Water Music project. The extension begins
with a concert of contributing Water Music musicians at the Interfaith Center
in New York City. Ryerson will return to Vermont to hang a showing of photographs
and music from Water Music at the Amy E. Tarrant Gallery at the Flynn Center
in Burlington. The show runs through January 1. On November 15, Ryerson will
be at Barnes & Noble in Burlington for a book signing and talk. On November
16, Ryerson will open her show at the Flynn with a reception in the Tarrant
Gallery and a concert by Sweet Honey in the Rock with Carol Maillard, a contributing
musician to the project. December 6 will feature two book signings with Ryerson,
the first at the Dartmouth Bookstore in Hanover, N.H., the second at Sun of
the Heart Bookstore in Bridgewater, Vt. On January 17, Water Music musician
Brad Mehldau will perform at the Flynn.
To follow along and participate in upcoming events, visit the project at www.watermusicproject.com.
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