Mass Transit (2022)

Instrumentation:
Violin I
Violin II
Viola
Cello
Piano

Duration: ca. 12’

i. network architecture
ii. garden city
iii. airport express
iv. night skyline
v. interchange station

Mass Transit is inspired by Shanghai’s metro system—an elaborate network of lines, trains, tunnels / overpasses, and interchange stations. Each movement explores a facet of the subway network: the elegance of optimizing a system map, the variety of connections available in the city (gardens, airports, skyscrapers), and the complexities of multi-layered interchanges, where up to four lines converge. The piece as a whole is also envisioned as a musical “voyage;” the train stops briefly to take in the sights, before resuming its journey onward.

Performance history:

4/2025: Walla Walla, WA
Whitman College faculty

10/2024: Sarasota, FL
Soundbox Ventures

2/2024: London, the United Kingdom
East Wind Music

9/2023: Los Angeles, CA
TEMPO Ensemble

7/2022: Brunswick, ME
Bowdoin International Music Festival

6/2022: Belgrade, Serbia
Members of the Belgrade Philharmonic

1/2021: Melbourne, Australia
Members of the Melbourne Symphony