seeds (China) (2017)
solo piano

In writing these short pieces I wanted to rediscover how fun composing once was for me, before the weight of having to have "something to say", or even "knowing what you're doing". In many of my earliest compositions I was much more adventurous and curious, and I'm sure it was because I didn't think too much while I was writing; I just wrote, whether or not I knew what it would end up sounding like – musical doodling, if you will. Looking back on those early pieces I'm often surprised by how much more daring my ideas were, when there were no "stakes".

Over the winter holiday I took a short trip, and did my best to compose a complete page of music every day, as quick as possible, so as not to allow time for self-consciousness or doubt. It's a beautiful feeling to be able to surprise yourself; indeed most of these pieces turned out more interesting than I expected.

I learned a thing or two about myself too – what are my habits, tendencies, what do I do default to when I feel stuck? The title, "seeds", refers to the idea that these are each germs from which other music might one day grow, either as direct source material, or conceptual fragments to be more fully explored elsewhere.

(No recording exists as of yet, but perhaps sometime very soon!)