Chamber Music | Solo Instrumental | Vocal & Choral | Orchestral

With Wings (2021)

Written for Brandon Patrick George as part of the 2021 Artist Propulsion Lab.
Commissioned by WQXR New York Public Radio.

Performers:

Brandon Patrick George, flute
David Fung, piano

Program Notes:

When I think back on moments from my life, I can see a tendency to separate the good and bad. I replay stories and memories as if they fit neatly into clear and distinct categories, and over time they become simplified and codified in my mind as moments of either happiness or pain. But so often our experiences are actually an intermingled mix of thoughts and feelings, sometimes complementary, sometimes contradictory.

Queerness has shown me the depths of joy – society has taught me the pain of rejection. As queer people spread their wings and begin to lift off the ground, there is a lot that they must leave behind. As I wrote this piece, I was thinking about the complicated moments in my life where my confidence and joy were inextricably woven together with pain and loss. I found myself searching for bittersweet musical spaces that could hold the tension between two.