Julia Wolfe’s ‘Fire in my mouth’ focuses on 1911 factory tragedy and the plight of working women in the early 20th century

[LINK TO WSJ.COM]

Composer Julia Wolfe, second from right, spoke with members of the public as part of a special event, co-presented with the New York Philharmonic, at the Tenement Museum earlier this month. Photo: Agaton Strom for The Wall Street Journal By Elizabeth Yuan Jan…

January 24–26, the New York Philharmonic premiered Julia Wolfe’s Fire in my mouth, commissioned by the orchestra, Cal Performances at the University of California, Berkeley; the Krannert Center at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and the University Musical Society at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Wolfe’s music focuses on the garment industry in New York City at the turn of the century — specifically the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, which killed 146 garment workers, most of them young, female immigrants…