The Wound Dresser: A Series of Letters Written from the Hospitals in Washington during the War of the Rebellion

Description

The Wound-Dresser is a nineteen-minute-long piece by U.S. composer John Adams for chamber orchestra and baritone singer. The piece is an elegiac setting of excerpts from American poet Walt Whitman's poem "The Wound-Dresser" (1865) about his experience as a hospital volunteer during the American Civil War. It was written for baritone singer Sanford Sylvan, who premiered it on 24 February 1989 in St Paul, Minnesota, with the St Paul Chamber Orchestra conducted by the composer. It was subsequently recorded by the same forces for Nonesuch Records.[citation needed] Interpreters who have performed and recorded it since have included Thomas Hampson, Nathan Gunn and Jeremy Huw Williams. Wikisource has original text related to this article: The Wound-Dresser In 2011, the Oregon Symphony performed and recorded the composition for Music for a Time of War