Three tracks for Mekong Apocalypse were commissioned from the team of Terry McArthur (spoken word artist) and Justin Guip (composer, musician, producer). Poet and lyricist Terry McArthur drafted the song outlines, which were checked for research by Michael Buckley. These poetic tracks speak of ecocide, a dying river, a dying lake, and Hungry Water. The instrumental tracks have also been used in the film, composed by three-time Grammy award winner Justin Guip, mixed in his studio in upstate New York.
Tibet chapter
Another spoken word artist! The most famous in the Tibetan world: HH Dalai Lama. Actually, this is part of an interview orchestrated by Tom Vendetti and later set to music with renowned flautist Paul Horn and others.
At the start of the Tibet chapter is a song called Crystal Wings. This is a folk song from Amdo in praise of Tibet. It likens the mountains of Tibet to Crystal Wings that stretch far and wide, and also sings about the great rivers that give life and sustenance to the people. Such is the beautiful abundance of Tibet—now under supreme threat from Chinese dam-builders. Kelsang Chukie Tethong sings in Tibetan traditional style with high-pitched rendition.
STORYSCAPES by Victor Chorobik
Four instrumental tracks for Mekong Apocalypse were contributed by musician Victor Chorobik, essentially a one-man orchestra. He assembles multi-layered tracks in his backyard studio—an old work-shed converted for use as a music recording studio. Victor Chorobik is a designer, multi-instrumentalist and composer whose music converges many cultures and styles. Originally from Poland, he graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow before coming to Vancouver, Canada in the early 1980s. His visceral sound experiences draw on many musical influences including jazz, classical, and world music. He uses acoustic instruments and digital technology like a palette of colours and paints musical pictures that alternately probe and haunt, soothe and uplift—composing storyscapes in music.