This piece was written in response to the events when widespread protests against the regime were met with an intense and violent state crackdown. The events of those days were accompanied by a near-total internet blackout, mass arrests, and reports of extensive loss of life. Yet, for many Iranians, the experience was one of profound contradiction: fear alongside courage, grief alongside hope, anger alongside resilience, and the desire to resist alongside the simple desire to continue living.

Rather than attempting to portray these events, the piece reflects on the unstable emotions surrounding them. The musical voices can be understood as individuals within a society, sometimes speaking together, sometimes against one another, sometimes disappearing, and sometimes unexpectedly returning. Some are forceful; others are fragile, playful, restless, or uncertain. Their interactions do not follow a single emotional trajectory, just as human experience rarely does in times of crisis.

For me, this piece is also about the stubbornness of the human voice. People can be frightened, silenced, separated, or forced into silence, but that does not necessarily mean that they stop speaking up. When one voice disappears, another can emerge somewhere.

Premiered by: Monica Mendoza (flute), Darrin Thiriot (clarinet), Abby Morrell (violin), Marcos Rangel (cello), and Ian Wagman (piano)
Conductor: C.J. Russell
Venue: Dumke Recital Hall, School of Music, University of Utah, April 2026