ἄκλυτος (Unheard)

Giulia Gambino retells the story of the battle between the Lapiths and Centaurs, as depicted on the West Pediment of the Temple of Zeus at Olympia, through song. The sculpture - of which a plaster cast is displayed in the Museum of Classical Archaeology - shows a battle between humans and centaurs: a wedding party gone disastrously wrong. A woman fights off a centaur - a creature that is half-man, half-horse - with a well-placed elbow. Giulia writes, "My submission is a song inspired by the legend of the battle between Lapiths and Centaurs. I imagined the statue taking life and singing her story to the audience, explaining why she's reacting to the “abduction” of the mythological creature with all her might: it's a matter of principles and destiny, since -as we know- civility couldn't be beaten by irrationality, as Apollo’s presence confirms. But it’s also a love story: by surrendering to the Centaur, the protagonist would have lost life’s most deep purpose, Sappho’s “Theia Mania”!" This track is part of the Museum Remix: Unheard project. Find out more at: www.museums.cam.ac.uk/museumremix You can find out more about the sculpture at: https://www.museums.cam.ac.uk/magic/woman-elbowing-centaur