I: The Void

II: The Splintering of Light 

III: The Eruption of Colour

ʻRefraction, Reflectionʼ is a musical imagining of the process of light being refracted through a prism (white light is bent and separates into different wavelengths, forming a rainbow). The first movement, ʻThe Voidʼ explores a prism sitting in a space devoid of light. The second movement, ʻThe Splintering of Lightʼ, describes the chaotic journey of a beam of light as it travels through the prism and is refracted. An angular, rhythmic bass line drives this section, punctuated by dissonant interjections from the rest of the ensemble. ʻThe Explosion of Colourʼ highlights the dazzling array of rainbow colour as the light exits the prism, completely transformed.

Premiered by the Australian Youth Orchestra tutour ensemble conducted by Stefan Cassomenos. Elder Hall, January 2025.

I: A View of the City

II: Flying Fish

A Peculiar Place is an interpretation of an illustration by Australian writer and artist, Shaun Tan. The illustration fuses a grimy, bustling urban cityscape with dream-like surrealist elements. This piece aims to capture the juxtaposition in the image through two movements. The first movement aims to capture the eccentricity of the urban environment. The second aims to capture the magic and dynamism of a school of flying fish soaring over the city. 

Premiered by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Fellows conducted by Roger Benedict. Inaugural Sydney Conservatorium Winter School in Composition. Verbrugghen Hall, July 2024.

Evening Conversations is an amalgamation of concepts from jazz- fusion, progressive rock, and contemporary classical music. The piece focuses on the interplay of various rhythms and aims to capture the feeling of ‘simmering excitement’.  

‘Rush Hour’ depicts the dichotomy between the chaos and the beauty that exists within the morning rush hour of Sydney’s CBD as the city comes to life. Each morning the CBD is flooded with tourists narrowly dodging light rails on George Street, commuters cursing at buses pulling out of curbs just a moment too soon, frantic last-minute work calls made on delayed trains, and the blaring of horns at bustling intersections. However, it is easy to forget that there is beauty within this chaos: a golden glimmer of early morning sunlight leaking through the trees at Hyde Park, children murmuring excitedly on the bus about the school day ahead, and an intricate web of stories and experiences as thousands of lives messily intersect at this one place and moment in time.

I: The Sailors’ Argument 

II: Transformation 

III: Rolling Seas

The Dionysus Cup is the modern name of an Ancient Greek kylix painted by Exekias. The inside of the cup depicts a scene from the myth of Acoetes and the god Dionysus, which is told in its full form in Ovid's Metamorphoses. In this myth, a group of sailors kidnap a boy from the island of Naxos. The ship’s captain, Acoetes, recognises the boy as the god Dionysus, and tries unsuccessfully to persuade his crewmates to return the boy. This argument is depicted in movement I, The Sailors’ Argument. The crewmates promise to return the boy but do not keep their word. Following this, grape vines begin to entwine the ship, and the boy reveals his true form as the god Dionysus. This transformation is represented in movement II, Transformation. As punishment to the sailors who did not keep their word, Dionysus turns the men into dolphins. The motion of these dolphins gliding through the open seas is depicted in movement III, Rolling Seas.

Premiered at Sydney Conservatorium of Music in student composition showcase, 2023.

Recorded by the Queensland Wind Orchestra conducted by David Law as part of the Australian Women’s Wind Band competition 2022.

A short jazz-influenced piano piece with a nostalgic feel.