Local music composer creates work inspired by North Dakota poet

On the page, Hans Christianson Anderson’s Thumbelina is no bigger than a thimble and delicate as a flower.

Or is it delicate as a bomb?

For Grand Forks-based classical music composer and harpist Callie Stadem, Thumbelina is both, proving herself an enduring symbol of human vulnerability and resilience.

Stadem puts both on display in a quietly empowering new song cycle for soprano and harp titled “The Thumbelina Poems.”

Inspired by the poetry collection of the same name by North Dakota poet Merie Kirby, the project features 15 poems set to Stadem’s original music, performed by opera soprano and Grand Forks resident Anne Christopherson, with Stadem on harp.

Before professional recordings begin in January 2026, the song cycle will debut through a series of public performances in smaller