Songs on Tang Dynasty Poetry

Though I tried not to make this work too performer-specific, it is my most performer-inspired work. It was written for a trio featuring myself on erhu and cello, my talented friends Josiah Adrineda, percussion, and Skyler Baysa, vocalist and pianist. It is my first attempt at writing music inspired by my experiences over the last three years studying and performing traditional Chinese music from various eras including the Tang Dynasty, and Skyler's phenomenal skills singing in that style. The biggest challenge was to apply my knowledge in a way that would pay respect to the musical culture in an appropriate manner, while simultaneously allowing my own voice to be heard. Speaking of which, an artist wanting their own voice to be heard is the subject of the first poem, “In Prison, Chanting Cicadas,” by 駱賓王 (Luò Bīnwáng), about his imprisonment and the sound of cicadas on the Westward road. You will hear these cicadas throughout, and the sound of an artist’s vivid inner monologue wanting to break free - represented by a flurry of sounds, quotations and audio of past performances I myself hold dear, as a musician. The next poem, by 贺知章 (Hè Zhīzhāng) is about coming home to a familiar village as an old man. This is followed by an interlude that is the most direct inspiration of Tang Dynasty music, and gives way to the last movement, with poetry by 柳宗元 (Liǔ Zōngyuán) which depicts an old fisherman going about his day while his surroundings change from mist and darkness to a vast, vibrant view of mountains and rivers. Special thanks to Tom Pan who gave me tremendous advice on how to write in the Chinese language, and to professors Ken Ueno and Robert Yamasato for their guidance in the compositional process.

Hertz Hall, Berkeley, CA, November 22nd, 2024.

Skyler Baysa, Voice and Piano

Emile Serper, Erhu and Cello

Josiah Adrineda, Percussion