Assignment Earth

There was an episode I really liked of the original Star Trek called “Errand of Mercy”.   It’s an episode where Kirk and Spock beam down to the peaceful planet of Organia, whose people, they’ve come to warn against the threat of invasion by the Klingon Empire.  Their people are represented by Ayelborne (pictured center), Claymare (left) and Trefane (far end of table).  They are ‘The Ruling Council Elders of Organia’.

The strength and unity of these councilmen is one of the fun things about this episode.  The whole episode we think it’s a very primitive, peaceful planet.  People wearing simple robes, still tending flocks, horse drawn carriages, rooms lit by candles.  A very neat and complete picture of this world.   Except of course, at the end, we find they’re not primitive at all.   They are actually a race of people who have evolved millions of years ago, as Ayleborne explains, “beyond the need for physical bodies”, and into, as Spock puts it…..\”Pure Energy\”

This episode I’ve found brings a lot.

. . .Defiant Kirk operating in another role other than Captain – any episode he did this was always cool            to me (the chameleon in me I guess)

. . .Brief ‘Kirk Fu’ moments (any episode with this is a plus)

. . .Another insight into the mental capabilities of Vulcans.

. . .It introduces us to the Klingons for the first time in the franchise (John Colicos as the Klingon                    commander – the best).

. . .It established a long running reference point in the series of the ‘Organian Peace Treaty’ for years to           come.

And……

. . .It even became the source material for Information Society’s – \”What\’s on Your Mind?\” sampling Spock’s line “Pure Energy” for their top 40 dance mix tune I remember first hearing by the pool in the summer of ’88 (and as I was proud my favorite series was the source material, I remember feeling almost positive I was the only one if the water who knew where it was from).    Hmmm, I’ve always wondered what Nimoy made from having his voice sampled.   Surely they had to pay him something for that.

I’ve wondered what their world might have been like those millions of ages ago.   I’ve wondered what Ayelborne, Claymare & Trefane were like.

Borrowing a 6 or 7 note cluster they used as a sting in this episode – I distilled it down to 4 notes and based my piece around it.   (You’ll hear this ‘sting’ – this cluster, coming back from commercials – and then they used it a lot in the rest of the series episodes)

I tried to show what the planet would have been like at the beginning  – progressing through the ages –  and all the way to when the race eventually evolves into “pure energy” with a little effect at the end the instrumentalist do to illustrate that.

It’s a small chamber group.  The instruments making up this piece are:

Flute, Clarinet, Bassoon, French Horn, and Harp.

This was performed by members of the faculty of an orchestra camp I teach at every summer.  And because I’ve found that college music professors are very picky about being recorded (even in this instant YouTube, Internet age) I won’t list any of the performers names (at least at this printing date- I might change my mind later).   Even though they all played well and any potential employer or orchestra would be silly to take a summer camp recording and hold it against anyone.   And so there, and like that, even.

Here’s “Ayelborne, Claymare & Trefane – subtitled (The Ruling Council Elders of Organia)“