2. As a Philadelphia-born composer, what does it mean to you to have your work premiered by Mendelssohn Chorus? How has your connection to this city influenced your musical voice?

I am very proud to be from Philly, and I am thrilled to have this work premiered by one of the city’s finest performing arts ensembles. Even though I’ve lived in Los Angeles for nearly a decade, I have always felt myself a “Philly boy” at heart as a person and as a composer. Philadelphians are famously full of heart and personality - warm and genuine, dynamic and bold. Likewise, my work often features big, sweeping emotional gestures with powerful orchestration in a rich but inviting musical language. Philadelphians are also thoughtful and introspective, stemming from a deep tradition of Enlightenment philosophy dating back to the city’s founding. Similarly, I like to seek out texts that contain timeless wisdom about our world and ourselves and find new beauty and meaning in them for a contemporary audience by setting them to music. All of these characteristics are very much at play in this piece, and there’s no one better suited to give it its premiere than a chorus of my fellow Philadelphians!