kangyimusic

These poems express the detriments of unfettered consumption while leaning towards
what’s human, therefore sustainable. Motivic ideas from Armenian and Chinese folk
tunes tether compassion to identity along a silken road that celebrates being alive.

Disguise
The song begins with a reference to the mythical Persephone, deemed the queen of the
Underworld after her abduction by Hades. She is also considered to be the Goddess of
Spring, and is associated with awakening and regeneration. Wings that fly can also
appreciate the depths of the ocean floor. The Chinese words “blue, green, grey” allude
to the legendary Chinese melody, Jasmine Flower. Following a contemplative section,
the piano sounds out-of-sync as if disparate elements had grabbed hold of the octaves.
Then segments gradually coalesce into coherence; the rose and its thorns, the scars
and all align, reconciled, consumed, regenerated emptiness and form; cotton-obsessed
profits greet urgent human needs, embrace sustainable footprints.

What’s Green What’s Blue
The opening melody begins with two contrasting approaches: a pointillist style over
different registers of the piano, and the coherent slurred line of the bass. The music
swiftly alternates between digression and coherence, mirroring the idea of “dualities
intervene to convene”. A neighboring note motif, first appearing prominently as C-B-C,
dominates much of the piano part of this movement. The text reminds us to beware of
the delusional because there is no true ownership. The brief and blunt arrival of
musical elements of the piano declare all is transient. Beware the addictive, the
illusive capital. Here, an attempt to create “illusion” assigns four beats to a section of
3/4 time. One hears the four against the three between the right and left hands. Much
of the soprano melody references the first movement. For example, “puce chartreuse”
uses the same pitches as “Apassionado”. After a brief optimism, the movement turns
portentous. Nurturing polarity against broader perspectives dims our relationship with
nature and threatens sustainability.