'Lillian' Blends Opera, Folk and Ecological Awareness

Get Lost At The Sea With 'Lillian,' A Folk Opera

Say goodbye to white gloves, binoculars, Italian belted high notes and viking hats; opera has a new face, complete with a scruffy five o'clock shadow. With his upcoming folk opera 'Lillian', singer-songwriter-composer Ben Lear invites listeners to join him on a journey into the deep blue sea to find his lost love.

A topsy-turvy musical adventure commences, complete with invisible friends, lovesick howls and an eco-friendly message. Lyrics blend knowledge about pollution with toothache-inducing sweetness: "Here’s the place where the tiniest particles/ Swirl around like electric balloons/ They destroy all the life that the sea provides/ They destroy the primordial womb." Lear's upcoming performance of 'Lillian' will contain a 15 piece orchestra, gospel choir and set installation crafted out of 3,000 plastic bottles. 'Lillian' brings back the wonder of listening to a children's bedtime story with its innocent melody at once cozy and mysterious. The treat of an album sounds like it could very well have come from a treasure chest in the bottom of the sea.

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot