Light Love in a Mist began with the simple opening motive that actually came during an overnight shift at work, oddly enough. From this motive, paired with A.C. Swinburne's evocative text, everything else came.
The harmonic structure, besides favoring quartal and quintal harmonies, really draws to my fascination with the music of Ravel and shows some of his influence. I was also inspired by the work of Gwyneth Walker, especially by way of the piano's quintuplets in contrary motion that arrive in the middle section. This a musical device that she uses in almost all of her choral pieces, and from experience, these are very fun to play. After the driving middle section, the accompaniment becomes more sparse, and a shorter version of the opening motive returns, leading to the calm close in B major.
This work was commissioned and premiered by the Moravian College Women's Chorus and their director, Mr. Eduardo Azzati, whom to both I owe tremendous gratitude for giving me countless opportunites to write for such an esteemed ensemble.
Light Love in a Mist (2015)
