Composer
Program Notes I wrote TaReKiTa as a gift for a choir called Urban Voices Project. They are a choir of people who are currently or have recently experienced homelessness on Skid Row in Los Angeles. They are so dear to me, and one day I just decided to teach them about Indian rhythm. They enjoyed … Read more
Program Notes In Hindustani music, an avartan is a rhythmic cycle. Each avartan returns to its point of origin, while simultaneously moving the music forward into new territory. This work progresses from what I imagine a listener would perceive as characteristically Indian (almost as if it was the transcription of a Hindustani melody and drone), and then moves slowly along the … Read more
NOTE: There are two versions of Even After All This Time — this one is without clarinet. See sidebar for version with clarinet obbligato. Program Notes Even After All This Time… takes its text from a beautiful quote by 14th century Persian poet, Hafiz, in a translation by Daniel Ladinsky. The text of the piece is simply: Even after all this time,the sun never says to … Read more
Program Notes The genre of women’s choral music is very special to me. The first piece of music I ever wrote, at age 13, was for the choir at the all-girls middle school I attended in Los Angeles, long before I knew it was even possible to be a professional composer. Each of the movements of I Rise: Women in Song is inspired … Read more
Program Notes Even After All This Time… takes its text from a beautiful quote by 14th century Persian poet, Hafiz, in a translation by Daniel Ladinsky. The text of the piece is simply: Even after all this time,the sun never says to the earth,“You owe me.”Look what happenswith a love like that:it lights the whole sky. Ladinsky’s texts are not direct translations — rather, they are … Read more
NOTE: This is a reduced version of the work — movements 1, 3 and 4, rescored for women’s choir and flute obbligato. It is designed to be more mobile and flexible, and was rearranged for the commissioning group’s touring ensemble. Program Notes The genre of women’s choral music is very special to me. The first … Read more
Program Notes When I lived in India in 2012, I was introduced to the work of Manav Kaul, an incredible Hindi-language playwright, actor and poet living in Mumbai. Hindi is a language that has become increasingly anglicized in its evolution. While there is so much beautiful ancient work in Sanskrit and Brijbasha (some of Hindi’s … Read more
Program Notes Earth Speaks is a large 45-minute choral work that explores different perspectives on our earth through the lens of three Pasadena institutions. It was commissioned by Pasadena Master Chorale in 2015. Embedded in this multi movement work is a movement for treble choir, which sets the text of Ohlone poet Stephen Meadows. The poem, … Read more
Program Notes When I lived in India in 2012, I was introduced to the work of Manav Kaul, an incredible Hindi-language playwright, actor and poet living in Mumbai. Hindi is a language that has become increasingly anglicized in its evolution. While there is so much beautiful ancient work in Sanskrit and Brijbasha (some of Hindi’s … Read more
Program Notes When I lived in India in 2012, I was introduced to the work of Manav Kaul, an incredible Hindi-language playwright, actor and poet living in Mumbai. Hindi is a language that has become increasingly anglicized in its evolution. While there is so much beautiful ancient work in Sanskrit and Brijbasha (some of Hindi’s … Read more
Program Notes When I lived in India in 2012, I was introduced to the work of Manav Kaul, an incredible Hindi-language playwright, actor and poet living in Mumbai. Hindi is a language that has become increasingly anglicized in its evolution. While there is so much beautiful ancient work in Sanskrit and Brijbasha (some of Hindi’s … Read more