The Floating World

ensemble 1.1.1.1, 1.1.1.0, 3 perc., pno., strings
written spring 2023
duration 10 minutes

Commissioned by the ArtZenter Institute for the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players

I have long been familiar with ukiyo (translating to ‘the floating world’) prints. The ubiquitous Great Wave Off the Coast of Kanegawa was always attractive to me for its narrative intensity, but it was not until recently that I began to appreciate ukiyo’s most discussed feature: the evocation of motion. My life had suddenly become full of such motion: I moved from city to city and watched a revolving door of faces and places spin past me. It was lonely and disconcerting, but it also was exhilarating and strangely beautiful. I became attracted to this notion of beauty in ephemera, leading me naturally to the nonchalant and sensual impermanence of ukiyo prints.

“Living only for the moment, savoring the moon, the snow, the cherry blossoms, and the maple leaves, singing songs, drinking wine, and diverting oneself in simply floating, unconcerned by the prospect of imminent poverty, buoyant and carefree, like a gourd carried along with the current of the river: this is what we call ukiyo.” - Asai Royōi, Kyoto native and Buddhist priest

The first ukiyo prints, created in the 17th century, depicted scenes of common life in Kyoto as well as popular entertainers of the time, from geisha to sumo wrestlers. The focus on these earthier, ‘lower’ subjects captured the newfound joie de vivre that permeated a newly affluent Japanese society: perhaps the subjects worthy of preservation did not have to be lofty and noble. Instead, ukiyo-e suggested that any pleasurable or evocative moment was deserving of immortality.

My piece The Floating World seeks to capture ukiyo’s energetic lust for life through its bubbling vitality. The music rarely sits still, perpetually moving from one harmony to the next as whirling lines spin their way through the ensemble. Every aspect of the piece, from its shimmering orchestration and effusive patterns to its rhythmic instability and melodic transience, is meant to evoke the wispy exuberance of ukiyo prints.

This piece was begun while in residence at Copland House, Cortlandt Manor, New York, as a recipient of the Copland House Residency Award. It was commissioned by the ArtZenter Institute Grant for the San Francisco Contemporary Players, and is dedicated to my dear Ellie Cherry, whose ebullience, whimsy, and support are endlessly encouraging to me.