West Nickel Mines
a chamber opera in one act
On October 2, 2006, a shooting took place at an Amish schoolhouse in in West Nickel Mines, PA. The atrocity claimed six lives: five Amish girls (ages 6–13) and a single shooter. The following is not about the shooting itself, nor is it about the shooter; rather, it focuses on the aftermath. While undoubtedly an unfathomable tragedy, the narrative of this shooting was quickly eclipsed by beautiful acts of forgiveness, communion, and self-sacrificial love.
Table of Contents:
Scene 1 – p. 7 – 39’’
Scene 2 – p. 18 – 3’55’’
Scene 3 – p. 43 – 7’27’’
Scene 4 – p. 58 – 10’30’’
Scene 5 – p. 64 – 13’05’’
Notes on the opera:
This iteration of West Nickel Mines was realized within a mostly remote setting. Limitations of personnel, time, and public safety have influenced instrumentation, duration, and recording methods. While this version can stand alone as an abridged iteration, I intend to expand this story to a full-length opera, with a larger cast and scoring.
The libretto is based on three books written by the wife of the shooter, mother of the shooter, and an account on behalf of the Amish, respectively.
Some of the libretto is in the mother tongue of the Amish, Pennsylvania Dutch. This language is a distant dialect of German and is often spoken in the homes of many Amish. As a Pennsylvanian, and a descendant of PA Dutch ancestors, I wanted to honor the tradition of the language and have been collecting biblical text that are most important to the Amish and are taken from a PA Dutch translation of the bible.
The Amish are an incredibly communal people, and is consequently portrayed as a unified force. While there will be specific Amish characters, such as a grandfather and a mother of the victims, the soloists are often supported by chorus representing an amalgamation of the Amish community, presenting each line in homophonic assent.
In the majority of Amish communities, most musical instruments are prohibited, with a common exception of accordion and harmonica. The accordion used in this recording belongs to my grandmother, and does not have any type of registration; therefor the score does not reflect standard accordion notations in this way.
A counterpoint within this work is the concept of anti-sensationalism. In an effort to de-sensationalize the reporting of school shootings, as is the unfortunate current state of reporting on such topics, this account refrains from focusing on the events that unfolded inside the schoolhouse, nor does it even mention the shooter’s name.