Austice (Clarinet Quartet)

2024

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Austice - n. a wistful omen of the first sign of autumn—a subtle coolness in the shadows, a rustling of dead leaves abandoned on the sidewalk, or a long skein of geese sweeping over your head like the second hand of a clock. (from the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows)

Its getting to be the end of summer, and with that comes fall, my favorite season of the year. This piece represents the complicated bag of emotions around the season, especially as it's my first autumn away from home. The composition is meant to invoke a constant sense of swirling, be it of the wind or of the ebbs and flows of dissonance to create a conflicted sense of comfort and confusion.