Aurora
1.1.2.1-2.1.0.0 or 1.1.1.1-1.1.1.1, 2pc.-hp.-pno.-strings (non div.) | 2019 / 22 | 17'
Past Performances:
Riverside Symphony, cond. George Rothman. Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, New York, Dec. 8, 2022.
Eastman Composers’ Sinfonietta, cond. Garrett Wellenstein. Kilbourne Hall, Rochester, NY, Apr. 10, 2019.
Aurora was originally composed for the Eastman Composers’ Sinfonietta and premiered in 2019. A second version was modified in orchestration for the Riverside Symphony, but the core of the piece remains the same in the two versions.
The richness of meaning in the word “aurora” made it an attractive title for this piece, as the piece seeks to create and explore its own world over the course of its three movements. “Aurora” generally refers to the polar lights, which was a key image during the piece’s composition, and there are many musical elements that could be heard as referencing this beautiful feature of nature, even though the work is ultimately abstract. For example, it would be hard for me to not hear the high pitches towards the beginning of III as stars dotting the sky, and the frequent open fifths that permeate the work as referencing an open and expansive space (the sky and/or a large, open space in nature). Similarly, the work’s beginning process—moving continually upwards and eventually filling almost the entire register of the orchestra—seems to represent looking up from the ground toward the night sky.
On larger scale, the work is constructed as an arc, which reminds me of an aurora suspended across the night sky. This arc has both linear and cyclical (A-B-A') features; the last movement is reminiscent of the first, but not in an obvious way. The middle movement stands out as a moment of contrast, but still within the world of the piece. Harmonically, the first movement works primarily with fifths, the second movement adds in mostly tritones, and the final movement “resolves” these with mostly tertian harmony (which includes the fifths of I), creating both stasis and change across the work.
“Aurora” also references dawn in its etymology, which could also be heard in the piece. The three movements could consequently be heard as morning, noon, and night, but at its heart the piece is abstract. The work is also not tied to a geographical location. When I wrote the piece, during a snowy winter in Toronto and Rochester, NY, I was mostly imagining the boreal forests of Canada or the desolate snow-covered landscapes of Svalbard. However, one listener convinced me that the music is a fitting depiction of the Chilean desert.
Here I am discussing the work with the Riverside Symphony’s Artistic Director, Anthony Korf:
