Song of the Caged Bird by Lindsey Stirling: Choosing to Live Fully

Summary: Song of the Caged Bird celebrates the choice to live fully and appears on Lindsey Stirling's eponymous first studio album.

Lindsey Stirling, TEDxBerkeley, Feb. 4, 2012: Ira Serkes from Berkeley, CA, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

American performance artist Lindsey Stirling (born Sept. 21, 1986) titled her lyrical composition, "Song of the Caged Bird," in honor of "Caged Bird," a poem about freedom by American author and poet Maya Angelou (April 4, 1928-May 28, 2014).

"Caged Bird" appeared in Shaker, Why Don't You Sing?, published by New York City-headquartered Random House in 1983 as Maya's fourth volume of poetry. Maya's poem echoes the title of her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. The autobiography was published by Random House in 1969 as the first installment in an eventual seven-volume autobiographical series.

Lindsey's "Song of the Caged Bird" conveys Maya's message of freedom. The composition celebrates living fully and following dreams, even in the midst of adversity, through belief in self potential, faith, and perseverance.

"Song of the Caged Bird" appeared as the fourth track on Lindsey's first album, Lindsey Stirling. On Sept. 18, 2012, Lindsey released her eponymous debut album via iTunes. The collection was released Sept. 25, 2012, as a CD via BridgeTone, an independent label.

Lindsey co-created "Song of the Caged Bird" with hip hop artist and EDM (electronic dance music) producer Marco G. Lindsey and Marco G blended their talents on 10 other compositions on the album: "Anti Gravity," "Crystallize," "Crystallize Mashup," "Electric Daisy Violin," "Elements," "Elements" (orchestral version), "Minimal Beat," "Shadows," "Spontaneous Me" and "Transcendence."

The music video for Lindsey's composition was directed by Nathan D. Lee, with a release date of Nov. 29, 2012. The video traces the emergence and journey of hope as Lindsey, awakening alone, surrounded by boxes, in a darkened room with barred and bricked windows, uncovers light bulbs and candles and, in the last box, a violin. She transforms her surroundings, with the room taking on a warm glow, as candles and light bulbs light up with her dancing and playing.

Arizona-based Gold Canyon Candles Company, an online and direct sales retailer founded in 1997, donated a plethora of photogenic candles for the video.

As of Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2015, YouTube views of "Song of the Caged Bird" total 8,363,641.

Nathan Lee, who graduated from Brigham Young University's Media Arts Studies Department in 2009, has directed other videos of Lindsey's music. "Transcendence" was released July 29, 2011, as an original video on Lindsey's YouTube channel. "Moon Trance" was released Oct. 23, 2012, as an original video on Lindsey's YouTube channel. "Stars Align" premiered Feb. 6, 2014, as a clip on Yahoo Music! prior to posting on Lindsey's wildly successful YouTube channel.

"Song of the Caged Bird" entertains and inspires as an affirmation of hope and a celebration of living freely, to the fullest, through discerning an individual's passionate interests and following dreams.

As with its namesake poem, "Caged Bird" by Maya Angelou, Lindsey's composition honors the natural desire for freedom, found within all living things, that nascently bubbles over into a full, impassioned life, be it as an author and poet, as in Maya's case, or as a performance artist, as in Lindsey's instance.

Song of the Caged Bird appears on Lindsey Stirling's self-titled first studio album: Lindsey Stirling @LindseyStirlingMusic via Facebook Oct. 2, 2012

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Lindsey Stirling, TEDxBerkeley, Feb. 4, 2012: Ira Serkes from Berkeley, CA, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lindsey_Stirling.jpg

Song of the Caged Bird appears on Lindsey Stirling's self-titled first studio album: Lindsey Stirling @LindseyStirlingMusic via Facebook Oct. 2, 2012, @ https://www.facebook.com/lindseystirlingmusic/photos/a.150997748265754/469679476397578/

For further information:

Angelou, Maya. “Caged Bird.” Poetry Foundation > Poems and Poets.
Available @ http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/178948

Bissonnette, Christine. “Lindsey Stirling Sings of Freedom.” Cella Magazine > Articles.
Available @ http://cellamagazine.com/lindsey-stirling.html

“Lindsey Stirling.” Apple > iTunes Preview.
Available @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/lindsey-stirling/id719708098

Lindsey Stirling. "Song of the Caged Bird - Lindsey Stirling (Original Song)." YouTube. Nov. 29, 2012.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inb8MMZ-QmA

Lindsey Stirling @LindseyStirlingMusic. "Pre-order my new album now! www.pledgemusic.com/lindseystirling." Facebook. Oct. 2, 2012.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/lindseystirlingmusic/photos/a.150997748265754/469679476397578/

“Marco G.” No Requests Music > Bio.
Available @ http://www.norequestsmusic.com/index.php/marco-g-biography

“Music.” Lindsey Stirling.
Available @ http://www.lindseystirling.com/music/