2026
7′
Program Notes
At the Mercy narrates a quest for fulfillment. The piece is composed of a series of ascents, each rising towards ethereal and glorious destinations. They grow from murky openings to become empowered and resplendent before collapsing, overburdened, by their own weight. Repeatedly we attempt this rise, hands outstretched in yearning, only to fall after our fingers graze upon transcendence.
These long ascents are juxtaposed with musical ‘gifts’ or ‘mercies’. They arrive suddenly, appearing as unexpected moments of beauty to liberate us from this cycle of striving and failing. In this way, At the Mercy imagines enlightenment not as the product of our efforts, but as something freely given from sources beyond our control. They cannot be created or earned, they can only recognized as brief respites and mercies.
This piece is heavily inspired by Cavalleria Rusticana’s Intermezzo, especially in the string writing. Most of my immediate family doesn’t listen to classical music, but once while I was playing some Puccini on the radio, my father remarked that it was something his mother listened to when he was growing up. The Italian side of my family (including this grandmother) immigrated to the U.S. in the 1930s, bringing with them a love for Italian verismo operas that I hadn’t realized until I fell in love with the genre myself. I like to think this piece, being inspired that tradition, would make my grandmother smile.
Premiere Information
At the Mercy was premiered by the Bergamot Quartet at arts, letters, and numbers on August 8, 2026 in Averill Park, New York.
Violin I – Ledah Finck
Violin II – Sarah Thomas
Viola – Martine Kinsella Thomas
Cello – Irène Han