Chlromnesia II
for customized moisture sensor, plant, and live electronics
Chloromnesia I
for customized moisture sensor, plant, and live electronics
For All We Took
for soprano and sinfonietta
The Whale
for orchestra
Chiyu
for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano
The Arrow and the Song
for soprano and sextet (flute, clarinet, violin, cello, percussion, piano)
Dissolution
for solo cello
Scale
for sinfonietta
Lumaqua
for water and live electronics
Chloromnesia II | 녹색기억 II (2025)
for customized moisture sensor, plant, live electronics.
Premiered at the CECM Fall 2025 concert at Indiana University.
Excerpt
Full Video
Chloromnesia I | 녹색기억 I (2025)
for customized moisture sensor, plant, live electronics.
Premiered at the CECM Spring 2025 Concert at Indiana University.
Excerpt
Full Video
For All We Took (2023)
for soprano and sinfonietta (17 players)
Performed by the Indiana University New Music Ensemble
Commissioned by Georgina Joshi Foundation & Indiana University Composition Department
Program Notes
As an individual living in today's world, I often find myself questioning the impact of my human desires and actions, especially considering the severity of climate change, environmental issues, and the suffering of nature and animals caused by human cruelty. It feels almost indulgent to pursue personal ambitions while the Earth's climate and environment are approaching an irreversible tipping point due to human activities.
Faced with countless problems resulting from human behavior, I have experienced deep self-doubt and questioned the purpose of my own art. Feeling a sense of responsibility as a composer, I wanted to contribute, even to a small degree, to addressing these issues through my work, as the tragic consequences of our current lifestyle will undoubtedly be experienced by our generation.
When I received the commission from the IU New Music Ensemble, I resolved to convey the suffering endured by nature and animals in some form. I collaborated with Ari Schwartz (b. 2000), the poet of "For All We Took," who is also my colleague in composition at IU, to create a poem that criticizes human actions and apologizes to the natural world. We worked together through multiple revisions to ensure that the poem's emotions could be effectively expressed through music.
Dedicating this piece to Mother Nature, I have experimented with contemporary musical approaches. The piece criticizes humanity, portraying the pain and sorrow of nature and animals, and expressing apologies to the natural world. Ultimately, the piece sings of hope. I aim to convey doubts about whether humans in the present age can truly coexist with nature and whether we are incapable of change. I want to deliver a message that there is still hope if we start making small changes now.
The Whale (2023)
for orchestra: 2[II=picc].2.2[II=Bcl].2[II=cb] – 4.2.3.1 – hp.perc[timp+2] – strings[12.10.8.6.4]
Commissioned and premiered by Korean National Symphony Orchestra
Program Note
This composition delves into the profound issues of climate change and environmental problems, which have become the most significant challenges for the current generation of humanity due to human activities and selfishness. As I began to deeply contemplate these issues, I embarked on a sonic exploration centered around the theme of the suffering of nature's creatures at the hands of humans.
In The Whale, the sounds of whales are depicted in both physical forms and abstract interpretations based on personal imagination. Throughout the composition, the whale sounds are expressed in a multidimensional manner, adapting to various musical contexts. The sonic characteristics and changes in coloration within different sections offer varied perspectives on the sounds of whales.
In the early sections, within a meditative musical concept, the composition seeks to present the diverse sounds and emotions of whales. In the middle to later sections, the piece aims to portray the whales' suffering due to the overwhelming presence of plastic pollution. Ultimately, the composition gently concludes while hinting at the souls of deceased whales and the hope for the future.
Chiyu (Healing; 치유; 治癒; 2023)
for quintet (flute, Bb clarinet, violin, cello, piano)
Performed by Dissolution Ensemble / Premiered by Moscow Contemporary Music Ensemble
Commissioned by the 4th Hangzhou Contemporary Music Festival
Program Notes
The title of the piece, "Chiyu," represents the Korean pronunciation of the word "치유," which translates to "healing" in English. While healing typically conveys the idea of curing diseases, "chiyu" embodies a more psychological, experiential, and humanistic approach. This piece is composed as a response to unexpected and challenging hardships that intrude as unwelcome guests into everyday life, causing deep wounds and feelings of melancholy.
The process of composing the piece itself was aimed at psychological healing, seeking sounds that bring solace and tranquility to the mind, without being constrained by any particular formal structure. Throughout the composition process, I sought to find healing for these emotions, relying on the act of composing itself to seek emotional stability within myself. I aimed to express my emotions delicately and emotionally, drawing upon the unconscious resonance of sounds, without the restraint of rational control. I crafted the music using contemporary musical language, capturing the unique sensations inherent in these sounds with sensitivity and emotion.
Additionally, elements of meditation that brought comfort to me during a brief stay at a hanok (traditional Korean house) called 치유재 (Chiyoujae, literally "Healing Studio") in Seoul's Bukchon area are reflected throughout the composition.
The Arrow and the Song (2021)
for soprano and sextet (flute, Bb clarinet, violin, cello, piano, and percussion)
Program Notes
This piece was created for an American classical poem, "The Arrow and the Song" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The theme of this poem implies regarding humans' lives in which whatever a person does or says remains forever, not being in vain in any way whatsoever. He explains that we put so many things in the world and they return to us in either good or hurtful ways, which gives us a meaningful lesson that we must be wise with respect to what we act and say. I feel this poem, without doubt, can apply to quite a lot of situations that happen in our lives. Through this piece I wanted to send my wishes for the world to be more peaceful and beautiful being in harmony.
Dissolution (2024)
for cello solo
Premiered by Junjae Jeong at A Heart that Listens to the Earth concert
Program Notes
In March of this year, temperatures in Antarctica soared to 38.5°C above the seasonal average. This rapid climate change, a direct consequence of human-induced global warming, is accelerating sea level rise and intensifying extreme natural disasters, posing a grave threat to both humanity and all life on Earth. This work sonically depicts the process of a glacier’s journey from fracture and collapse to its ultimate dissolution through the language of contemporary sound.
Throughout the piece, a variety of extended techniques are employed. Breath and voice intertwine, and the ingressive multiphonic effect—produced as the voice splinters while inhaling—evokes a sensation that is not merely cold, but eerily chilling. Harsh noises created by bowing behind the bridge, pitchless sounds generated by damping the strings, and percussive tapping of the fingerboard without bowing represent the moments when a glacier cracks and begins to split apart. The frequent use of trills throughout the work symbolizes drifting fragments of ice gradually melting away into the sea, receding further and further until they vanish.
At its center, a frenzied passage erupts, portraying the climactic moment when the glacier rips apart and collapses. In the final section, the trills grow increasingly delicate, until only the faintest resonance remains—marking the glacier’s complete disappearance. Knowing that this process cannot be stopped, I sought to express, through sound alone, the deep sorrow and urgency I feel as an artist witnessing such loss.
Scale
for sinfonietta (17 players): 1[picc].1.1.1.1 – 1.1.1 – hp.pf.perc[2] – strings
Program Notes
The motivation for this work derived from doubt on what contemporary classical music is. This suspicion stemmed from a feeling of resistance against the kind of music that is often filled with the abuse of special and extended playing techniques music, and that contains difficult rhythms and requires a high level of technique to play - which felt to me unappealing, meaningless at that time - and thus, I ended up being eager to find a genuine meaning of music. This reminded me of the musical material, "Scales", which has been the basis of tonal music, thereby encouraging me to explore it.
Scales are the most commonly used materials in all musical genres. I struggled with developing this piece in a contemporary musical language that highlighted the scale without evoking boredom, as it could sound banal and childish. Based merely on the simple material, my piece was created by deriving from various musical factors which play a significant role in completing a musical grace of tonal music, and in the combination of contemporary musical features with them, further makes its own unique features.
Lumaqua
for water and live electronics
Excerpt
Full Video
Program Notes
Lumaqua, combining 'lumen' (light in Latin) and 'aqua', is a work that captures water's ethereal beauty. Opening with the sound of falling water droplets, the piece gradually expands into larger sonic landscapes. The composition contrasts two distinct elements: live water sounds and electronic effects created using a Wacom tablet, where pen movements across x, y, and z axes generate multidimensional sound parameters. These seemingly disparate sound worlds merge naturally throughout the piece. Meditative passages invite listeners to experience the sensation of being submerged, creating moments of underwater contemplation.