Composer Julia Wolfe sought the right scissors — dozens of pairs — for the January 24th premiere by the New York Philharmonic of her oratorio “Fire in My Mouth,” which commemorates the 1911 Triangle Waist Company factory fire that killed 146 garment workers, most of them young immigrant women. Scissors manufactured by Wiss made the satisfying “swoosh” sound Wolfe sought. The Crossing chamber choir “plays” them in the oratorio, which also features 146 girls from the Young People’s Chorus of New York City. Read more about a young Italian immigrant who survives the Triangle fire in Tazia and Gemma (see NOVELS).
