The Perfect Moment

17 Miles Drive, California

The entire day was cloudy with light drizzle. I was disappointed coming into the scenic drive because I don’t think there will be a chance of sunset tonight. Depressing mood and disappointment filled the car. All of a sudden, I noticed an opening in the sky, blew open by the fierce wind. The sky slowly started to open up from a tiny hole. As the wind got stronger and stronger, the sky slowly started to open up more and more. The golden sunset and the blue sky appeared behind the thick clouds. I immediately rushed off my car towards the beach, witnessing this breath taking moment. An expected surprise that mother nature brought me. As I witness this beautiful moment, three birds lined up flew across the image in the opening in the sky, as if they brought the sunset with them.

Symbols in Composition

The composition switched from Simple Triple Meter 3/4 into Simple Duple Meter 4/4. The change is from the 3 birds that flew across that changed the mood.

The mood changed from depressing and peaceful piano into a full orchestra beginning with Cello solo, later Oboe solo and ending the piece with Brass and Trumpet solo. Representing all the different elements during the change in the sky.

The piece doesn’t feel resolved, ending on a V because the beauty continued and this image represented only the beginning of the beautiful Sunset.

Death for Lives

Russians Fall, Alaska

Every year during breeding season, salmons have to swim upstream miles and miles upstream to where they are born, with calm water, to continue their life cycle. And once this journey begins, there is no turning back. Breeding Salmons don’t expect to survive because they will either naturally die after they lay their eggs or during their journey by exhaustion or predators such as bears and eagles. Their only intention is to survive until they reach the destination to give lives for their offsprings. Death for Lives.During the hike up, I witness many salmons, exhausted as they slowly swing their body against the fierce current cold bloodily pushing them back to downstream. This salmon in the image is red is a result from bleeding internally from the constant crashes with the rocks as she leaps with thousands of lives in her. This is such a powerful and determined image and yet, it obtains so much sorrow and despair. It showed the mother’s love to their offspring even with the cost of her own life.

Symbols in Composition

The chimes and bells in the beginning of the composition showed the calmness of the image, a frozen snapshot of an split second motion.

Dissonance chords by the brass instruments throughout the piece showed the tension and the determination in the salmon as she leaps

Bassoon solo to end the piece to show the despair that this salmon probably won’t make this leap, which ultimately means death…

Deep Cello marcato and sustaining created a restricted and dark mood. As if the rocks on four sides of the image is caging the salmon and restricting her from leaping forward.