Programme Note
Commissioned by the Santa Monica Museum of Art for the exhibition The Ballad of Kastriot Rexhepi by Mary Kelly, the work was first performed by Sarah Leonard and string players from the Michael Nyman Band, 11 December 2001 at the Santa Monica Museum of Art. Mary Kelly’s words tell the true story of a young Albanian boy who was abandoned presumed dead, found by the Serbian authorities, who assumed he was Serbian and gave him a new Serb identity, abandoned a second time when the Serbs left Kosova and finally rescued by Albanians who uncover his true identity. It is a stunning piece – poignant and moving and full of pathos. Nyman uses the power of Kelly’s words to produce a work which in its directness, conveys the horror of war and its tragic consequences.