Scarlet Symphony Mvt. I - Hester, the Adulterer
Nov. 2021 - April 2022 (for full orchestra) Inspired by Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, this piece illustrates the eloquent, stirring story of Hester Prynne, a resident of the Puritan Massachusetts Bay Colony who conceives a daughter through an affair and is forced to suffer through a life of social degradation, repentance, and loneliness. Each movement focuses on a major character of…
Turkey Trot
May 2022 (for strings orchestra and ocarina)for Mr. D & the Siwanoy Sinfonietta “Bald Eagle...is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly...[he] is too lazy to fish for himself. [While a turkey is] a much more respectable Bird, and withal a true original Native of America...He is besides, though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage.” - Benjamin Franklin. Franklin’s…
From the Darkness
Jan. 2021 (for full orchestra)From the Darkness is based on my favorite artist’s painting from 2008 and poem, which she exclaimed that the words rushed to her immediately after she finished the artwork, and it was written to celebrate her 80th birthday. The piece takes place in a dark, ominous forest filled only with the barely-audible chirps of insects, and the sudden arrival of three witches…
Hey Warrior, Keep Going (orchestra ver.)
May 2020 (for full orchestra)Hey Warrior, Keep Going was originally a brass quintet about overcoming obstacles in sports and other aspects of life. However, with the COVID-19 outbreak that brought many people in the world hardships and pain, I decided to orchestrate this piece to give energy and hope to everyone - the frontline workers, struggling laborers, the jobless, overworked parents - and…
Bradbury Symphony mov. IV - The Day it Rained Forever
Sept. 2019 (for full orchestra)Based on Bradbury’s short story “The Day It Rained Forever”, which takes place in a ghost town hotel on a burning desert. Three old men await the January rains, having to live there for three decades with lack of passion for life. A musician comes to visit, who has set out in determination to find an audience who would truly appreciate her music. After the old men’s…
Last Spring (2019)
May 2019 (for string orchestra)Last Spring is a piece originally written for my 5th grade graduation, and later arranged (or 85% re-written) for my 8th grade graduation, where we reflected on our middle school journey. It represents the many friendships that we have all come to cherish, a reminiscence of our experiences together - good, bad, surprised, melancholic, fun, annoyed, content, all of…