Oracle of the Moon

Originally composed as part of the 24 Hour Concert in 2018 at the University of the Pacific, "In a Different Light" was first composed, rehearsed, and performed in the span of 24 hours. Initially written for viola, contrabass, and piano, it has gone through several revisions in instrumentation and harmony. This piece is about how things may seem innocuous at first glance, but then turn out to be more alarming than assumed.

Written in rondo form, "In a Different Light" begins with a fiery refrain which is passed between each instrument. Then, the piano takes the spotlight, playing a lilting Chopin-esque nocturne in D major. The viola and saxophone join in, and the music drifts off before jolting back to the first theme. In the following section, the viola takes the lead with a big glissando as the saxophone dances around the melody. The nocturne which was light and peaceful before is transformed into a strained tango played in a minor key. The music gradually accelerates, culminating in a final statement of the main theme.

In 2018's "Confession", Seessa uses uneven time signatures to show the skipping of a heart beat and reflects nerves of being around someone that makes you nervous. At 15 years old, this is Seessa's first composition that he notates and appreciates from his high school years.

"Black fire" is a piece written for the berklee high school composition intensive program back in 2019. Seessa completed this program with a concussion, so this solo piano piece was handwritten and only uses black keys to try to add some simplicity to the piece.

"The work was composed in 1999 at a time when a close member of the composer's family was seriously ill. The ode of lamentation, which is about seven minutes in length, is assigned to the two instruments in such a way that they play singly in swift succession, frequently in unison, and then together as in a contrapuntal duet . . . The sound emanates from two sources, the tone colours of which are complementary and do not form a contrast. The vibrations are strictly synchronized, so that the intoned lamentation seems to come from a single source. This determines the rich simplicity of Mansurian's music." (Hanspeter Krellmann)

This piece is named after Saturn's moon Enceladus, an icy rock that on one hand appears barren, but in fact is ravaged by its host planet's tidal forces. The piece begins in a subtly moving way and gradually shifts to extreme heights, with bouts of beautiful melody and again a final shift toward stasis. It fuses cyclical and teleological elements to create a raw, emotional, and touching character.

"Bright" was composed for the 2023 Cortona Sessions for New Music in Cortona, Italy for alto saxophone and viola duo RE:Duo. The piece began as a culmination of a variety of compositional ideas, but ultimately explores the ways in which the alto saxophone and viola are similar, emphasizing the overlap between their ranges, timbres, and certain playing techniques in order to create a "bright" composite sound. While the piece favors perpetual motion and "motor" rhythms to feel more propulsive, it ends with a much more subtle, solemn ending where the similarities between the two instruments are made clear.

"Blue-Footed Booby", named for the seabird, went through many iterations to get to its current form. It started as a single movement from a sonata (four movement work) for violin and piano. Unfortunately this piece was never performed in that form, and when I decided to create this concert I thought it would be nice to revive this quirky, off-kilter piece.

It is written in a rondo form, ABACAB'A, and weeves elements of jazz, bluegrass and classical throughout. The A section is permeated by repeating notes and patterns that are passed between the various instruments and features heavily syncopated (off-beat) rhythms. The B section is defined by a more melodic approach to the piano part, which is accompanied by viola double stops. The viola and the alto saxophone take turns soloing in the C section. The piano part is very sparse for this trio, allowing the viola and alto saxophone to shine.

From the composer's score notes: "Traditional Diné (Navajo) chants were used as sources of inspiration for these 15 piano compositions, which were originally released on Connor Chee's album The Navajo Piano in 2014. These pieces draw from the rhythms, forms, melodies, and methods of development used in traditional Navajo music. Some of the pieces are close transcriptions of the songs, while other pieces focus only on elements such as rhythm and recurring melodic patterns... [Number 9 - 12] are based on Navajo Corn Grinding Songs".

Particularly striking in these compositions is the fusion of the chant melodies with impressionistic piano accompaniment and simple but powerful harmonies. Groupings of five beats are pervasive throughout this suite, a feature relatively uncommon in western music that helps lend to the piece's insistent forward drive.

"Oracle of the Moon" is written in four parts (ABA'C), and is an exploration of the conflict of what is and what can be. The first section is based on the superposition of two chords, a subversion of the tonic/dominant relationship that is the basis of nearly all western music of the last few centuries. The second part is a sparse, barren wasteland, with only fragmentary melodic and harmonic ideas. This transitions into a recapitulation of the A section, with renewed rhythmic focus and more exceptional decorations in the viola and alto saxophone. In the last section, we arrive at a harmonious melody that has been hinted at throughout the piece. The piece is finalized with one last push to the end, breaking the wondrous eternity of the preceding music with flickers of a violent past.