WE'RE GOING TO HEAD BOOK TO THE OTHER SIDES OF THE STUDIO NOW, WHERE JG PRESTON IS STANDING BY.

>> YEP, I'M HERE, ERIC.

THANKS, FUN TO BE BACK.

I USED TO BE HERE QUITE REGULARLY DOING THINGS LIKE EATING SOAP, SINGING TO CHRISTMAS DISPLAYS, DELIVERING ESSAYS, AND HOSTING MUSIC SEGMENTS LIKE THIS ONE WITH THE STEELES BACK IN 1998.

WHEN I MOVED AWAY, JEARLYN STEELE BECAME "ALMANAC"'S MUSIC AMBASSADOR.

JEARLYN COULDN'T BE HERE TONIGHT BUT WE WANT TO SHARE A SHORT SNIPPET OF HER FAVORITE MUSICAL INTERVIEW.

BACK IN 2007, WE HIGHLIGHTED THE MINNESOTA OPERA'S WORLD PREMIERE OF "THE GRAPES OF WRATH" WITH COMPOSER RICKY IAN GORDON.

HE AND JEARLYN SAT DOWN AT THE PIANO AND HAD A GRAND TIME.

>> YOU REALLY HAVE TO DECIDE WHAT IT'S GOING TO BE FORMALLY.

YOU HAVE TO BREAK IT DOWN IN YOUR HEAD IN TERMS OF, OKAY, THIS IS HIM A BOOK AND IT'S NOT A PLAY OR A MOVIE, IT'S AN OPERA.

WHAT DO I THINK I CAN BRING TO THAT STORY?

SO, FIRST FOR ME, I HAD TO DECIDE FORMALTILY, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT IT WAS GOING TO BE A SORT OF BALLAD OPERA WHICH MEANS THAT IT WAS GOING TO HAVE ALL KINDS OF SET PIECES, ARIAS, DUETS, TRIOS, DANCES.

I BROUGHT IN A LIKE BRITTIST, A FANTASTIC LYRICIST AND I ALLOWED HIM TO HIRICKIZE THE STORY AND BREAK IT DOWN INTO THREE ACTION.

FINALLY, HE GAVE ME THE FIRST ACT AND WHEN I SAW THE FIRST ACT, HE DECIDED TO USE THE FIRST CHAPTER OF THE BOOK AS ALL ABOUT THE BIRTH OF THE DUST BOWL AND O MICHAEL WANTED TO SHOW THAT ON THE STAGE BUT OPENING THE PIECE WITH A FIELD OF GREEN CORN AND IN THE COURSE OF THIS NUMBER, WHICH IS CALLED THE LAST TIME THERE WAS RAIN, WE WOULD SEE THE CORN TURN BROWN AND EVENTUALLY FALL INTO THE STAGE AND NOTHING WOULD BE THERE BUT THESE CROPPERS AND THE DUST.

>> THE LAST TIME -- >> THE LAST TIME THERE WAS RAIN.

>> WHAT WOULD THAT SOUND LIKE?

>> OH, THIS IS SO -- I'LL JUST PLAY THE VERY BEGINNING OF HOW IT STARTED.

I FELT WE HAD TO SET UP THIS WORLD OF UTTER OPENNESS, RIGHT, JUST OPEN PRAIRIE, OPEN, YOU KNOW, SO HERE'S MY MUSIC FOR THE VERY START.

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