About this Piece

Chrysalis explores the process of dramatic physical transformation and internal self-discovery. A chrysalis is a hardened shell encasing and protecting the butterfly during its most vulnerable phase, when its body completely dissolves and reforms as a new being. Throughout the work, the orchestra represents the power of nature, the wisdom of the body, the inevitability of change, and the uncertainty of life while the cello embodies the nascent butterfly, at once destroyed during its metamorphosis and at the brink of new life.The piece is divided into two sections. At first, the cello strives to assert dominance and authority over the orchestra, resisting and protesting its message. A dialogue or battle unfolds between the two, with the orchestra ultimately overwhelming the cello, who retreats and begins to break down. In the second section, the cello turns inwards. A horn, clarinet, high strings, and sparse percussion serve as guiding lights, beacons of hope, as the cello winds her way towards creating new meaning. Alone, the cello works through and ultimately rebuilds the musical material, delivering her own melodic message. She welcomes the orchestra in at the work’s conclusion, ready to embrace the vulnerability, beauty, power, and fragility of living. The cello emerges in her transformed state, not yet in full flight, but on the cusp of a new beginning.