Blair School of Music will present the Tennessee premiere of Julia Wolfe’s acclaimed choral work Fire in my Mouth on November 14, 2025, in Ingram Hall. The program will feature a chorus of more than 100 voices performing with the Vanderbilt University Orchestra, including The Vanderbilt Sixteen, Vanderbilt University Singers, Vanderbilt Youth Choir, and members of the Nolensville High School Choir.
Fire in my Mouth memorializes the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, the worst industrial disaster in New York City history, which took the lives of 146 garment workers, mostly young immigrant women. The tragedy and its aftermath led to significant labor reforms and improved workplace safety laws in the U.S.
Premiered by the New York Philharmonic in 2019, Fire in my Mouth is a four-part, 48-minute work that musicalizes the sounds of protest, oral history, Yiddish and Italian folk songs, and factory machinery to create a gripping and unforgettable experience. The work is the third in a series of Julia Wolfe compositions focusing on the American worker.
This production is supported by a generous grant from The Curb Center.
Accolades for Fire in my Mouth:
“… ambitious, heartfelt, often compelling …” – The New York Times
“… deeply affecting …” – The Wall Street Journal
“… an accomplishment on a level unmatched in [Wolfe’s] previous work.” – The Nation
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Blair School of Music presents Fire in my Mouth
Friday, November 14, 2025, 7:30 p.m., Ingram Hall
Vanderbilt University Blair School of Music
2400 Blakemore Ave., Nashville 37212
Tickets: $12.50
Purchase Tickets
* Free parking is available in the Vanderbilt West Garage on Children’s Way, directly across from Blair School of Music.