To Seek Is Jubilance

Drawing inspiration from the universal ideals echoed in Beethoven's 9th Symphony, To Seek Is Jubilance is a composition unfolding across 15 movements. The piece blends many musical vocabularies into a transcultural tapestry. This synthesis is a testament to the dynamic transcultural interactions that regularly occur across all musical genres. The composition integrates polyrhythms and melodic systems (blues guitar) from North and West African musical traditions, ornaments and motivic forms from Persian classical music, ornaments and rhythmic forms such as tihais and moras from Indian classical music, along with polyphony from 16th-17th century Western classical music and the timbre of the electric guitar and bass from contemporary pop music.

At its core, To Seek Is Jubilance delves into the philosophical exploration of joy. It posits that the essence of joy can possibly be most intensely experienced in the pursuit of a blissful moment, rather than in the moment itself. This concept is beautifully encapsulated in the text of the poem Never The End by Kiara Skye, which was specifically commissioned for this piece. In To Seek Is Jubilance, the text of the poem is heard in its entirety at first, then portions are repeated and re-ordered later in the piece. The text is an integral part of this musical journey, enriching the sonic narrative of seeking and finding jubilance.