Zegiel, Evan - Oceanic Ignition

Written for Tuba and heavy metal band (fixed media) Performance Part “Oceanic Ignition” is the first track on my solo heavy metal album, The Human Element. It aims to paint a picture of the ocean, seemingly on fire due to an oil spill from an underwater pipeline. This has become an increasingly more common occurrence as oil drilling and refining has exponentially increased over the past century. When the infamous BP oil spill occurred at the Deepwater Horizon rig in 2010 – the largest oil spill in history – I was in my sophomore year of high school. I will never forget seeing the images on cable TV news of the ocean on fire and countless animals drenched and suffocating in the oil. It was at this moment that I became an advocate for conservationism and climate activism. Composing music on these themes is my effort at making activist art. In “Oceanic Ignition,” one can hear an untouched marine ecosystem in the gentle, undulating guitar rhythms which open the track. The 5/8 time signatur