for String Orchestra
Duration: 9-10 minutes
Premiere recording of the Michigan State Symphony Orchestra, Asieh Mahyar, cond.
Lately, I’ve been intrigued by the nature of my dreams. Between the extremes that are aimless wandering of random visions and vivid nightmares, there is a lot to say about dreams. Dream Wanderer chronicles the feeling that I get when I experience sleep and dreams, with a lullaby-like theme tying the entire piece together despite its many moods. The lullaby theme comprises a large chunk of the piece, going through several variations and different orchestrations, modes, and meters. This gives way to a more active section with fast, repeated notes and the lullaby theme being stated with pizzicato to show how active dreams can be- flying around, talking to various characters, and visiting odd places! This transitions into the climax, which gives a glimpse into a more nightmarish world but it, like nightmares embedded into normal dreams, doesn’t last long. That climax explodes away into a more creepy version of the lullaby theme, which represents my initial apprehension after the nightmare while looking around my dark room. One last statement of the lullaby theme with pizzicato ushers in a new sleep session as my worries slip away.
Dream Wanderer (string orchestra)
Strings
23 March 2023, Michigan State University Symphony Orchestra, Asieh Mahyar, cond.