Solo/Duo Works

During a year-long collaboration with Zoe Loversky to compose a new live electronic piece for viola, I initially focused on her virtuosity, repertoire and unique sound, in addition to the physical attributes of the viola. Soon these observations laid a foundation for Feathered Rainbow, aided by my study of viola literature and spectral applications.

Another idea in using electronics was to enhance the potential of live acoustics, not prohibiting the audience from hearing the performer or overpowering the performer. Then, all tapes and synthesized sounds are derived from her own recordings, naturally blending with the live performance, while applied effects magnify certain elements of the live sound.

As the title suggests, consonant intervals and overtone series serve as an axis, while more dissonant voices fluctuate from the center, forming an arch-shaped structure. This dynamic extends to the relationship between two performers: the viola exerts a core momentum, and the electronic oscillates between augmenting the viola sound and interacting as an interdependent improviser.

"Beaconsfield" stands for Beaconsfield Station in Brookline, Massachusetts, United States. As a small suburban trolley station, passengers are few, especially on weekend mornings. Its unfurnished facilities are rather mundane and unremarkable.

However, one day I realized the odd harmony of the station and its natural background: fenceless railways embraced by maple trees, wooden platforms more than a half-century old, falling leaves, electric wires that segment the sky, horning trains, children's voices from a nearby playground, pre-recorded arrival signals from old speakers, and more. Also, I came to recall the different seasons of this station: muffled footsteps on the snow, red and yellow foliage on the railway, headlights through morning mists, blossoming flowers...

Following this discovery, I imagined the audiovisual time-lapse of this station, and then I reversed the time flow and transformed it into sounds. "...at Beaconsfield" is therefore an aural projection of these moving images, which contains continuous changes (rather than repetitions) from one season to another, but also consistent peacefulness and harmony.

Psalm 121 is titled a “song of ascents” to the temple. The narrator(s) first seek help, and soon realize that God is actively protecting them. Although they acknowledge that there are obstacles and dangers on the way, they still are confident that God will keep them from all harm. This harm can be both physical and metaphorical – struggles from the Christian life. Also, the sanctuary - their contextual destination – still stands on the earth, but is spiritually separated from the secular world. 

While reading this psalm, I came to internalize the text with my experience of climbing mountains and my spiritual life: I, as a living creature, am bound to the physical and earthly realm, and prone to slip and stumble. But during my life, God continuously assures me of his guidance, on the toilsome yet joyful road to his kingdom.

This piece is my reflection on Psalm 121, and the materialization of my spiritual journey. Unlike real mountaineering, which ends in descending, the beginning section never comes back in the original motifs, for the path set after me is ever ascending. 

The title "Theme and BHariations" stands for the two notes, B flat (B in German) and B natural (H in German). From these two notes, a raw theme is paraphrased by the twelve ephemeral variations. Apparently, each section shows distinct gestures and moods without a stable meter, although the sonority is closely connected. Clusters, noises, and accented notes are dry and fragmental. Also, silence is a variable factor, occasionally playing a key role as much as sounds. And the striking dynamic and register contrast intensify the drastic shift between the variations. 

This piece supposes a “laughing competition” in which the composer, performers and the audience can enjoy together. This song is composed in four scenes: encounter, competition, reconciliation and cooperation. Also, undefined materials, for example, improvisation and acting, make this song unique in every performance. To express laughter, I selected two wind instruments, especially Saenghwang and Melodica, considering that can express polyphony. 

Sea Fragments is a patchwork of many scenes and stories about the sea. This contains personal experiences of the composer himself, an event that has already passed, a myth, and a sad memory that is still circling in the memory of the people. This piece is the result of selecting, extracting, shuffling, and weaving together ten thousand of these “seas” into one musical piece. This piece is neither a variation, nor a suite. The song flows continuously without interruption, but one episode ends prematurely shortly after its appearance and the next episode suddenly appears in the acoustic space. Sudden unfamiliarity, is the emotion I want to describe my conception of the ocean. At first glance, the difference can be heard as very drastic. But if you listen closely, you will hear that each piece resembles the other and forms a story.

In this piece, I arranged the melody of Dum medium silentium (in the moment of silence), a Gregorian chant. Like the lyrics of this chant, I would like to express God’s silent but timeless power and beauty that cannot be perceived by our earthly perception, with the unique timbre, long phrases, and even silence.

Also, I let the player freely select among multiple suggestions for each section. Also, sometimes the player should improvise within abstract notations. Therefore, every performance becomes distinct from each other, thus expressing the might that is identical in essence but ever-changing in appearance.