Title: Inheritance
A new chamber opera by Lei Liang draws attention to the hopelessness associated with gun violence in the United States. It explores the psychological effect of a fortune made from guns, specifically the Winchester rifle, on one of its heirs. At the mansion she built in San José, California, Sarah Winchester sought refuge from the spirits of those killed by these rifles. Inheritance’s libretto, developed by Matt Donovan in collaboration with the composer, was inspired by her and the house’s physical structures and designs, especially the ever-present number 13. Inheritance’s libretto refers to its “13 cupolas,” stairway with “13 steps” and “13 hooks” in the séance room, this in addition to what Liang noticed in the house itself. The challenge for both librettist and composer was to create a space both real and imagined-- simultaneously “prison,” “temple,” and “home” for Sarah and a complex labyrinth in which, later, visitors got lost, confused by “doors to nowhere.”

Scene One: Prologue
Scene Two: Sarah Winchester and Ghosts Scene Three: Tour Guide
Scene Four: Interlude Song
Scene Five: Sarah Winchester
Scene Six: Flashlight Tour
Scene Seven: Ghosts Duet
Scene Eight: Winchester, later in life
Scene Nine: Winchester, Ghost 1, Ghost 2, and Tour Guide
Scene Ten: Coda
Total Time= 51:16

Artist(s): Susan Naruck
Sarah Winchester
Kirsten Wiest - Ghost 1
Hillary Jean Young - Ghost 2
Josué Cerón - Travel Guide
Steven Schick - Conductor
Anthony Burr, clarinet
Madison Greenstone, clarinet
Fiona Digney, percussion
Sean Dowgray, percussion
David Aguila, trumpet
Pablo Gomez Cano, guitar
Takae Ohnishi, harpsichord
Mark Dresser, contrabass
Recording Info:
Produced by Judith Sherman
Engineered by Andrew Munsey
Engineering Assistant: Mike Butler
Harpsichord Technician: Joe Garrison
Editing Assistant: Jeanne Velonis
Recorded May 16-19, 2019, in Conrad Prebys
Concert Hall, Music Department, University of
California, San Diego

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