Wu-Tang Clan rap star RZA is turning his hand to classical with today's release of A Ballet Through Mud on Platoon.
Composed for a 2023 stage production at Boettcher Concert Hall in Denver, Colorado, the score has been recorded by the Colorado Symphony Orchestra and conductor Christopher Dragon. The 2023 performance also featured choreography by Yusha-Marie Sorzano.
RZA composed the coming of age story, encompassing love, friendship and personal growth, during the pandemic lockdowns, inspired by lyrical notebooks he wrote in his teens.
A coming of age project for RZA
'I have been composing my whole life, although I didn't know initially that was what I was doing,' RZA said. 'The inspiration for A Ballet Through Mud comes from my earliest creative output as a teenager, but its themes are universal – love, exploration, and adventure. I hope people use it to score their own lives, to transform a drive to the grocery store or sharing a meal with loved ones into something magical, to be inspired and let their imaginations take them into a different chamber, if only for a moment.'
The rapper has also expressed a desire to inspire young musicians... 'Go ahead and take a chance on classical, take a chance with instruments, take a chance to be outside the box.'
Revolutionary American hip-hop collective Wu-Tang Clan formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. The group released their hugely popular debut Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) in 1993. Subsequent albums include Wu-Tang Forever, The W, Iron Flag, 8 Diagrams and A Better Tomorrow.