Kirsten Kunkle singing Reclaim the Land at the All Nations Teepee Village during Yellowstone’s 150th anniversary celebration (Photo credit: Jason Dick)
Reclaim the Land by Kirsten C. Kunkle
Written for the 150th anniversary of Yellowstone National Park
Commissioned by Mountain Time Arts
Reclaim the Land was submitted to the Dismantling Coalition’s Sacred Lands Playlist. It was accepted as part of our second volume of songs which will be released in 2026.
From the artist:
This song was commissioned by Mountain Time Arts for the 150th anniversary of Yellowstone National Park, specifically to be premiered by me at the All Nations Teepee Village.
The piece centers around Yellowstone specifically, but on a greater level, all lands, and the importance of preserving them and co-existing with the existing flora and fauna.
Being a Mvskoke (Muscogee) citizen, this work is meant to be a new anthem for Yellowstone and a tribute to all Indigenous peoples who support the nurturing of land in its most natural state.
Lyrics:
Now is the time,
Reclaim the land.
Share it, bridge the divide.
Reclaim the land,
And find a new day.
A new day.
Water has value.
Our people cannot be removed.
Hair stays long, and braids are never cut.
Schools do not exist to change us.
Women are no longer missing,
Our bodies never found.
Now is the time!
Now is the time!
The great arch stands.
Illuminated tipis demand attention amid the big sky.
We demand attention.
Now is the time.
The land is ours,
Sharing it with elk, bison, geysers, and trees…
The red sunset, snowy mountains, flowing water.
The collective breath that is nature.
Now is the time.
Remember who we are, and who we always have been.
Reclaim the land.
Become part of the landscape again!
Kunkle at Yellowstone 150th Photo credit: Jason Dick
Dr. Kirsten C. Kunkle is lauded as the leading Native American soprano in today’s classical music world. She is the co-founder and artistic director of Wilmington Concert Opera, a voice pedagogue, a composer, librettist, stage director, choreographer, and mother. She is a proud voting citizen of the Mvskoke Nation and graduate of Bowling Green State University and University of Michigan.
