violin & piano

Program Notes

Rain Shadow is a part of a larger collaboration between violinist Wyatt True, composer Benjamin Krause, and myself, titled Oregon Portraits. You can find out more about the project here.

Taken separately from the rest of the project, Rain Shadow‘s two movements invoke contrasting landscapes in the state of Oregon: the Willamette Valley, and the Avlord Desert. Separated by the Cascade mountains, it’s hard to believe that they reside on the same planet, let alone the same state. Due to the nature of the project, the movements are conceived to be played in either order.

The Air is a Chamber depicts the green saturation of the Willamette Valley. A landscape that sees 8 months of rain per year, the air is usually heavy with fog and moisture. This movement depicts a hike that I would take into the hills when I lived in Eugene, rising and looking out over the landscape.

The Earth is a Cell depicts the deserts east of the mountains, a place I had only ever heard about and never been. I imagined a place that’s the complete opposite of the valley, with miles of cracked soil.