The most beautiful thoughts are always beside the darkest.

My first moment of darkness happened at a young age- I didn’t want to be alive. The pain and loneliness I experienced is something I will carry with me for the rest of my life. At the time, my depression haunted me; I never thought I would find beautiful thoughts again. Sometime later, I learned that the most beautiful thoughts are beside the darkest and no matter what, you have to force yourself to embrace life through happiness.

Where the Sky Has No Stars is one of my most intentional pieces. It begins with singing bowls, metallic percussion, and a duet between flute and euphonium as a symbol of meditation: centering the soul. The second theme, darkness, is introduced by the euphonium as more voices enter the soul; as the piece enters a new dimension, the soul embarks on a journey through a sky with no stars. Danger eventually intrigues the soul and consumes it whole, but soon after, a segment of joy and light gleams closely in distance. Glockenspiel introduces the third theme, happiness. The soul continues to venture through the sky as the darkness creeps in gradually leading to a warm embrace of happiness- finally, the soul finds the stars again. While writing this piece, it didn’t feel right to end the piece here; instead, I ended the piece with a nod to the beginning, but in a major mode to signify a replenished soul returning home.

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