Composer's Note: This piece is a reflection on loneliness and how even if we have surrounded ourselves with people that bring positivity to our lives, there are still times when we feel excluded or wish that we had another person’s physical presence with us. To explore this experience, I took the concept of an antiphon—a sacred musical genre that traditionally involves call and response between multiple performers—and thought about how in an open space such as a cathedral, performing an antiphon may be possible if we consider the echo of one’s own voice to be a response.
Using this concept as inspiration, I visualized an image of someone entering an empty cathedral and singing a melody in a chant-style. As they sing, they hear their voice echo around the room and from this, they begin to imagine that they are performing with someone else—sometimes imitating each other and sometimes simply performing in harmony with one another. At the end of the piece, the “singer” again becomes aware of their surroundings and exits the space, leaving only the emptiness of the room behind.
Duration: 4.5'
Instrumentation: Alto Saxophone, Violin, and Percussion (Crotales, Vibraphone, Tam-tam)
