We live in a charged political environment and though music is often seen as an escape, many composers have chosen to use their work to make a statement. From Ted Hearne’s piece The Source, based on the story of Chelsea Manning, the US Army Private who infamously leaked classified military documents to WikiLeaks in 2010 to David T. Little’s operas about modern warfare to Bright Sheng’s music about the Cultural Revolution, we feature several composers who are speaking out.