Matthew Lam - Composer
Colors of Wind and Snow for Clarinet in Bb doubling Bass Clarinet, Violin, Cello and Piano (2025)
Duration: 9'
Read by Eastman Musica Nova: Eric Butler (clarinet), Zihua Ma (Violin), Aaron Lieberman (Cello), Irene Huang (Piano)
Program notes:
What is the color of wind? What is the color of snow?
Written during Jan-Feb 2025, this piece is inspired by the snow in Rochester, NY, where snow fell almost every day after a very late first snow in the previous December. In this piece, I attempted to depict various colors of wind and snow using various instrumental colors - techniques that directly resemble wind sounds, such as breath tone in clarinet and circular bowing in strings. I also aim to paint images of different levels of wind and snow, sometimes it is mild with only a few snowflakes dancing, but sometimes it could be violent and slaps directly into your face.