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Reena Esmail

Composer

Pranayam

May 2, 2022 by

Program Notes

Pranayam is a suite of short encounters with different types of active breath. The word pranayam literally describes ‘a harnessing of the life force’. Each movement is based on a specific breath pattern commonly used in yoga practice.

Dirgh is a three-part inhale, expanding the belly, diaphragm and chest in succession. Kapalbhati is the ‘skull- shining’ breath, made up of short, sharp exhales interspersed with moments of suspension. Nadi Shodhan is the ‘alternate channel’ breath, exhaling and then inhaling through alternate nostrils. Simha is the ‘lion’s breath’ – a powerful, audible exhale to release tension. Ujjayi breath is the ‘victory’ breath, sometimes also called the ‘ocean’ breath because of it’s audible wavelike sound, intended to keep energy circulating inside the body during the practice of yoga.

If you know these breath patterns, breathe along*. The music is designed to support your breath. If you don’t know the patterns, just imagine what they might feel like in your body. In a typical pranayam practice, you would stay with each breath much longer — so think of this work as a tiny pinhole view into an ancient transformative practice — or just a gentle reconnection to your breath in the midst of this constantly swirling world.

*(it is not lost on me that the only person in the room who won’t be able to follow these breath patterns is the oboist!)

Recording

Pranayam — Anqi Zhou, oboe; Elias Dagher, piano
Tanglewood Music Institute, July 29, 2023

Special Performance Requirements

none

Audio Guide

(audio guide forthcoming)

Premiere/Performances

Pranayam was premiered on July 26, 2022 at the IDRS Convention in Boulder, Colorado by Toyin Spellman-Diaz (oboe) and Hsiao-Ling Lin (piano).

Press/Reviews

View Product

Instrumentation: oboe and piano

Duration: ~10-12′

Year: 2021

Movements: ?

Commissioned by: International Double Reed Society

Program Notes

Recording

Special Performance Requirements

Audio Guide (for performers)

Premiere/Performances

Press/Reviews

Esmail is the Los Angeles Master Chorale’s 2020-2025 Swan Family Artist in Residence, and was Seattle Symphony’s 2020-21 Composer-in-Residence. She also holds awards/fellowships from United States Artists, the S&R Foundation, the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and the Kennedy Center.

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Requesting a perusal copy of choral music
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