'Lockdown' is a musical journey

Handcuffs. Metal detectors. Slamming cell doors.

These are sounds that most people aren't familiar with.

Composer Phillip Bimstein knows that, and that's part of why he created "Lockdown," a three-movement musical work that incorporates these sounds, along with the voices of incarcerated youths — telling their experience in their own words.

"I have ideas from time to time about creating pieces from people's stories, people's voices, as well as sounds from their environment," Bimstein said.

He uses the sounds and voices as musical instruments and then combines them with traditional musical instruments to create a piece that is thought-provoking, true to its source and that can stand on its own as an accessible musical creation.

"Lockdown" will be performed by Bimstein and his group blue haiku on Saturday in the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center.

The project started when Bimstein received a "Meet the Composer" grant from New York, which was a three-year residency to write works based on the people and landscapes and communities of southern Utah. "All of the works that I planned to write were on the beautiful landscape and the stories of the people who grew up in the community.

"But I thought I just wanted to cover a little bit of the other side — in this case, the extreme other side, kids who are confined out in that landscape. Kids who have gotten into trouble. So it's quite different from what I was primarily telling. But still, I thought, it's still an aspect of our community."

Bimstein — who was mayor of Springdale at the time — went out to the Washington County Youth Crisis Center on a weekly basis (on average) to mentor the kids. He played examples from his own music and encouraged them to express themselves creatively in a positive, constructive way.

In addition in saying things to the young inmates, Bimstein also listened to them. He heard their feelings, their experiences. He got to know them.

And in addition to hearing their message, as a composer Bimstein heard the various noises as music. "I love sounds. They interest me, not just what they mean. Like a car horn means 'get out of my way' or the sizzle of the bacon means that the bacon is cooking. But for me, I also like sounds for their musical quality, for their texture.