These few specks of time by Oswald Huỳnh | Parts

These few specks of time by Oswald Huỳnh

Commissioned by the Akropolis Reed Quintet

Oboe (doubling English Horn, extra bocal if possible), B-flat Clarinet (+wrinkled paper), Alto Saxophone (+wrinkled paper), Bass Clarinet (+wrinkled paper), Bassoon (extra bocal if possible)

20-23’

I. The living need light (c. 3’30”)

II. Father [TIME] (c. 4’30”)

III. Everything Everywhere All At Once (c. 5’00”–6’00”)

IV. [TIME] is a Mother (c. 3’00”)

V. The dead need music (c. 3’30”)

“These few specks of time is an examination of grief, time, and being. Living between two disparate cultures, I have had to reconcile many different identities and values, which has profoundly impacted my creative and moral philosophies. This piece is an exploration of some of those frictions, especially in regard to intergenerational relationships, conflicting ideals between East and West, and how different cultures perceive death. The title of the outer movements (I and V) are derived from a Vietnamese proverb: “Sống dầu đèn, chết kèn trống” (The living need light, the dead need music). The inner movements (II and IV) are conceptually inspired by two artists, Kendrick Lamar and Ocean Vuong, especially in their confrontations with intergenerational trauma—cultural conflicts between time. The central movement (III) is titled after the 2022 film of the same name, Everything Everywhere All At Once. The melodic material in this work is derived from the Vietnamese folk song, Lý Cái Mơn, which is presented in its full form in the first movement..” ~ Composer Oswald Huỳnh