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Darwin had the heart of a poet.


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Published: Feb 16, 2010

Charles Darwin was a scientist, yes, but he had the heart of a poet. Scholars have long appreciated the artistic component in On the Origin of Species, and two intersecting projects currently in Philadelphia aim to illustrate Darwin's direct influence on the arts.

The museum of the American Philosophical Society, yet another one of those "hidden gems of Philadelphia," is a major repository of things Darwinian, second in scope only to the mother-ship collection in Cambridge, England. Sue Ann Prince, the museum director, has been an advocate of using art to promote subjects that have otherwise been labeled stuffy and effete. The current show, "Dialogues with Darwin," includes a slew of original material alongside contemporary artwork specifically commissioned for the exhibit.

Network for New Music has been seeking collaborations with poets and composers for a number of years now, and artistic director Linda Reichert saw a perfect fit with APS and the Darwin project. Thus was born the Dialogues with Darwin Poetry Project. The ringleader of the event is Maurice Wright, a Temple-based composer and longtime associate with the Network. His piece, Darwiniana, written in a style which he calls "visual music," is directly inspired by the famous tree-of-life drawings Darwin made to illustrate his theories. The Network also put out a call for young poets and composers to submit works, and ended up selecting five new vocal works to be performed this weekend, with the excellent baritone Randall Scarlata as the guest vocal soloist.

Was Reichert by any chance concerned about possible controversy, given the still-contentious nature of the theory of evolution? She is gleeful in response. "I always have excitement about controversy. Actually, two of the composers who submitted works are creationists, which kind of shocked me." Of course what really matters is whether good quality art is created, regardless of the subject matter. If the track record of Network for New Music is any indicator, the odds of that happening are much better than random selection.

(p_burwasser@citypaper.net)

Dialogues with Darwin Poetry Project, Fri., Feb. 19, 8 p.m., and Sun., Feb. 21, 2 p.m., $20, Benjamin Franklin Hall, 427 Chestnut St., 215-848-7647, networkfornewmusic.org.