Selected Compositions
01
The Sea and Her Mirror
For Orchestra
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The Sea and Her Mirror is shaped by the narrative structure of a poem I wrote, which traces a series of shifting images observed along the sea at night. Rather than functioning as text to be sung, the poem served as an internal guide for musical pacing and form.
Throughout the score, the principal melodic lines carry fragments of the poem to clarify the narrative trajectory, allowing the music to follow the poem’s unfolding scenes.
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The poem begins with a quiet and reflective atmosphere, walking beside the sea under the moonlight. From there, the imagery widens: a fishing boat drifting into the harbor, a limping goose cleaving the water, sailors’ weariness eased by an old man brewing tea in the rain, and the shimmer of cinnamon on the surface of the cup like a small act of gentleness in a weathered world. The narrative deepens into mythic resonance with pearls scattered on the shore, quarrels among goddesses, a mermaid’s tears, and the hidden tremor at the bottom of the sea.
In the final section, the appearance of an immense whale, ancient and vast, becomes a moment of transformation. The whale then seems to morph into a bird, whose wingspan, creating the beat of waves, invites a return to the opening image: the sea as a mirror, and the sea’s mirror, reflecting the creature’s immensity.
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The music moves through these images as a sequence of shifting tides, using color, timbre, and gesture to echo the poem’s sense of wonder, distance, and quiet grandeur.
02
A Fleeting Glance among the Infinite Haze
For Orchestra
This composition, A Fleeting Glance among the Infinite Haze, came into my mind when I was climbing a high mountain in thick fog. It is a steep and awe-inspiring mountain that is well known for its peculiarly-shaped granite peaks.
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That day, the extremely cold weather came very suddenly, leaving the crowd drowned in great disappointment. The violent winds gave the crowd a glimmer of hope that the dense fog would be blown away, but the strong winds also brought the temperature to freezing point, making the crowd gradually lose patience.
Amidst the huge disappointment, anxious waiting, and slim hope, the dense fog suddenly lifted. Surrounded by the rushing mountains, the crowd immediately became quiet and marveled at the miraculous craftsmanship of nature.
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Although two minutes later the mountains were surrounded by thick fog again, the beautiful scenery disappeared, and the mountain wind was still cold. There were no longer complaints or disappointments among the crowd, instead, there was admiration and joy everywhere. I believe that these brief two minutes will remain in the hearts of everyone who was on the mountain that day.
This unexpected experience has lingered deeply in my mind, so I wanted to write this amazement in this composition and bring this wonder to the audience. Life is often full of uneasiness and confusion, and those moments of clarity that clear away the clouds and fog, although short-lived, are the strength for us to continue to move forward on our own life path.
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I wish to share this bright moment deep in my heart with the audience through this work.
03
The Traces We Leave Behind
for Chamber Orchestra
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The Traces We Leave Behind explores the ephemeral yet enduring marks we leave
in each other's lives. Like footprints in shifting sand or fading echoes in the air, these traces may vanish to the casual observer; yet to those who resonate with them, across time and space, they remain vividly present.
This composition is also a meditation on connection: the way a symbol, a memory, or even a shared silence can resonate across years, continents, or even species. Just as migrating birds leave patterns in the sky that vanish from sight yet remain in the
hearts of those who watched them pass, so too do we leave behind subtle signals of our presence. These signs, invisible to most, can only be recognized by those who truly know how, and where, to look.
04
Not From the Stars
For for Orchestra
Not from the Stars takes its title from Shakespeare’s Sonnet 14: “Not from the stars do I my judgment pluck.”
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In this work, the stars represent every external force such as fate, reason, and the vast machinery of the universe that seems to promise knowledge or control. Yet true understanding, the piece suggests, does not come from those distant constellations but from the subtle order that lives within the human heart.
Not from the Stars is a meditation on interior light, on the practice of remaining whole when the world itself seems indifferent, and on the courage to discover that the source of truth has always been within.
05
Miles To Go Before I Sleep
for Orchestra
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In this composition, I explore the tension between inner longing and external obligation, inspired by the poignant lines from Robert Frost’s Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening:
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The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
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These lines evoke a serene, introspective landscape, an invitation into a world of stillness and mystery, only to be interrupted by the quiet but unrelenting call of duty. The repetition of the final line underscores the gravity of this responsibility and the distance still to be travelled.
This piece seeks to capture this duality: the enchanting allure of the “woods,” representing the inner world of reflection, desire, or even escape, contrasted with the steady, forward-driving force of the promises that tether us to the external world. I juxtaposed expansive, harmonically rich textures with persistent rhythmic motifs, creating an interplay between dream and resolve.
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05
The Astonishing Light of Your Own Being
For String Orchestra
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The title, The Astonishing Light of Your Own Being, is a line from collected works of a Persian poet named Hafiz (1315-1390), who is regarded as the pinnacle of Persian literature. I encountered this quote – “I wish I could show you when you are lonely or in darkness the astonishing light of your own being.” – when I was visiting the Shakespeare and Company bookstore. The bookstore was crowded with tourists and it seems, at first glance, a lack of attraction for me to stay. Yet when I came down the staircase and was about to leave, I glanced at this quote painted in white letters against the narrow red staircase. Even with hundreds of years’ distance, these simple words struck me instantly, without a second to spare.
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This string orchestra piece is written for all the Peabody musicians, especially the string players during this challenging time. I hope my composition could show you when you are lonely or in darkness the astonishing light of your own being as well.
06
Nihil Sub Sole Novum
For Solo Cello
Pirouetting in Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Nihil Sub Sole Novum is a musical metaphor of its Latin meaning, “nothing new under the sun.” Though the history constantly repeats itself, it is my sincere wish that the lustrous glow in human nature will keep our faith in humanity.
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Special thanks to Dr. Chris Gross for generously sharing his knowledge of the cello extended techniques, his inspirations from the natural world, and his passion to make contemporary music reach to a broader audience.
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07
Through The Lens
For fl, vln, vc & pno
Through the Lens is inspired by a Dutch philosopher, Baruch Spinoza, who lived a simple life as an optical lens grinder. When writing the piece, I was imagining a brave young man polishing the lens under the moonlight. Though confined in a dusty chamber, the young man found his own belief, bright and clear.
08
ACHERON
For for Orchestra
The title, Acheron, refers to one of the five rivers of the underworld in ancient Greek mythology, on which Charon ferries souls. The piece reflects my wish that everyone will be accompanied by their loved ones when they take their journey through mists, clouds, lights, and even shadows before they arrive in Acheron. After all, there is no real going back once the journey has started, and it is the loved ones who give us strength on our way to Acheron.
09
Whale Fall
for Cello and Live Processing
A whale fall is a natural phenomenon of a cetacean’s carcass that has fallen into the abyssal zone (i.e. deeper than 1,000 m, or 3,300 ft) on the ocean floor.!It can build a complex localized ecosystem that supports sustenance to deep-sea organisms for several decades, and it was first observed in the late 1970s.
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This piece is based on the three stages of Whale Fall:
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Mobile scavengers stage
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The enrichment-opportunist stage
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Sulfophilic stage (Reef Stage)
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Over the course of this composition Whale Fall, the texture of the piece becomes rich first as the mobile scavengers get all that delicious, rancid flesh off the bone. The melodic material fragments into pieces corresponding to the bones and surrounding sediments that have been contaminated with organic matter from the carcass and colonized by different animals. The final section ends with sparse materials and limited live signal processing, portraying the skeleton of a whale finally turning into a reef and becoming a part of the seafloor landscape permanently.
The entire process of whale fall to me sounds like a huge feast and celebration for the poor environment in the deep ocean. I was intrigued by the juxtaposition of death and celebration involved in the whale fall, thus I wrote this piece.