Suspire

ensemble alto saxophone, double bass, chromatic button accordion
written summer 2023
duration 4 minutes

Written for the 2023 Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival

Suspire is a brief meditation on the act of breathing. Built out of several simple dovetailing ‘inhale-exhale’ gestures, the piece moves gently up and down the ensemble’s range as its members fade in and out of one another. The piece was my first foray into writing for classical accordion, and to compose it, I allowed the action of the bellows to guide the shape and direction of its gestures and form.