Branches

For clarinet, violin, piano, with optional video

Commissioned and performed by the AURA Contemporary Ensemble

The concept of branches began as a response to a way of thinking about the structure of music. Concepts such as the sentence and period could be treated as the principal way to approach writing and analyzing musical structure. The different approach for this piece was having the music explore outwards, return, and branch into new directions. The music constantly traces and re-traces new paths. We often behave this way too when we come across dead ends: we go back and try another way.

The accompanying video, made with the help of artist Ling DeBellis, depicts the unfolding structure of the piece in real time.