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Solo
2017
Piano
- Program Notes
- Ozian Symphony is a geo-political narrative that explores the four cardinal directions of the Land of Oz as it appears in the novel ‘Wicked’ by Gregory Maguire. The aim of this collection of pieces is to take the listener on an unadulterated, un-sugarcoated journey through Oz, observing it through a lens of realism. Located in Northern Oz is a region called Gillikin Country. Gillikin is the most developed province of Oz and holds the most affluent populace and economic power, second only to the Emerald City. Growing up, I had fallen in love with Stephen Schwartz’s musical, ‘Wicked.’ I found it fascinating to see the parallels between the musical and the film, ‘The Wizard of Oz.’ When I was younger, I had been told that the musical was based on the book ‘Wicked’ and that it was strikingly different from the musical. At the time, however, the people who told me about it wouldn’t say much more than that it wasn’t age-appropriate. Not being a huge reader in general, I never really sought it out. While in college, I took an English course where ‘Wicked’ happened to be a required reading. Before the class started reading the book, the professor asked a rather blunt and straightforward question: ‘Is the Wicked Witch of the West really evil because she wanted a pair of shoes that were rightfully hers?’ This question blew my mind; such a thought had never occurred to me until then. After that, I dove headfirst into the book. What really captivated me about the book, among other things, was the way Maguire set up this socially and politically realistic world. Just as in ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ geographical regions are identified by the cardinal directions of East, South, North, and West. Maguire meticulously prescribes stereotypes and assigns rather detailed belief systems and social norms for the different compass points. After finishing the book, I was so blown away by the journey I had just been on that I wanted to create a sonic journey that would take us to this hyper-realistic Land of Oz. This solo piano piece is the first movement I worked on, and it is also the movement that I spent the most time on. This solo piece contains all of the thematic material present in each of the symphony’s movements.
- Publisher
- Alias Press